Macron thanked Notre Dame restorers for saving the cathedral

French President Emmanuel Macron during his speech expressed gratitude to all those involved in the restoration of the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris. His speech was broadcast on December 7 on the official page of the Elysee Palace in the social network X (former Twitter).

"The French nation is grateful to all those who saved and rebuilt Notre Dame," Macron said.

He also noted the merits of 340,000 people who made donations to rebuild the cathedral and said that the fire affected not only French citizens, but also people outside France.

Earlier in the day it was reported that the opening ceremony of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris in Paris will be held indoors due to bad weather.

The invitation to the opening ceremony was accepted by US President-elect Donald Trump. At the same time, the current President Joe Biden decided not to attend the event.

In April 2019, the largest fire in history occurred in the Cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris. The spire collapsed, the flames engulfed the supporting structure. As established by the investigation, the fire started at the top, where restoration work was underway at the time. The exact cause of the fire was not made public. In March 2023 it was reported about the completion of an important stage of restoration of Notre Dame de Paris - restorers mounted the spire of the cathedral. On December 31, 2023, French President Emmanuel Macron announced in his New Year's address that the cathedral would be reopened to visitors on December 8, 2024.