US President-elect Donald Trump gave the Prince of Wales a pat on the shoulder before the two shook hands and spoke for a few seconds at the Notre Dame ceremony

Prince William shook hands with US President-elect Donald Trump as the two greeted one another at the Notre Dame ceremony in Paris.

Mr Trump gave William a pat on the shoulder before the two shook hands and spoke for a few seconds on Saturday evening. The world-famous Notre Dame cathedral burned in a devastating fire in 2019, causing its spire to topple. In a ceremony to mark the re-opening of the landmark in central Paris, William and Trump were seen chatting ahead of a scheduled meeting the two are due to attend later this evening.

The Prince of Wales had been expected to meet Trump and outgoing first lady Dr Jill Biden ahead of the event, but Kensington Palace later said the pair would meet after the ceremony in another location in Paris.

US President-elect Donald Trump gestures as he talks with Prince William
Around 50 heads of state and government will be in the French capital to celebrate the rebuilding of the Gothic masterpiece following a restoration project that costed hundreds of millions of euros. Among those attending are billionaire Elon Musk and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

French President Macron will deliver a speech at around 7pm ahead of a commemorative service hosted by Archbishop Laurent Ulrich of Paris. From around 8:15pm, choirs of the Maîtrise Notre-Dame de Paris will sing during the service, while a televised concert is due to be broadcast from 21:15pm.

Trump was seen patting Prince William on the shoulder ( 
Image:
Getty Images for Notre-Dame de P)

French President Emmanuel Macron, Prince William and Brigitte Macron ( 
Image:
Blondet Eliot/ABACA/REX/Shutterstock)
Later this evening, William and Trump will meet to discuss the importance of the US and UK’s “special relationship”. Kensington Palace announced yesterday that the Prince of Wales would be attending the event marking the reopening of Notre-Dame Cathedral on Saturday.

A palace spokesman said: “The Prince of Wales will travel to Paris tomorrow to attend the ceremony marking the reopening of the Notre-Dame Cathedral. His Royal Highness is travelling at the request of His Majesty’s Government on behalf of the United Kingdom.”