Macron suggests anti-pension reform protests forced him to cancel King Charles' visit

French President Emmanuel Macron, watched by the then Prince Charles and Camilla during a ceremony at Carlton Gardens in London during his visit to the UK in 2020 (Jonathan Brady/PA)

French president Emmanuel Macron has defended postponing King Charles' historic state visit to France, saying it would have lacked “sense” to stage the historic event when anti-pension reform protests were planned.

Charles and Camilla were due to begin the first state visit of the King’s reign on Sunday but after a night of violent nationwide demonstrations that led to hundreds of arrests and police officers being injured, the trip was shelved.