French President Emmanuel Macron led the traditional ceremony on Paris’ Champs-Elysees Monday commemorating the day that marked the end of World War II in Europe in 1945, according to AP News.
Flanked by Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, Macron laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier under the Arc de Triomphe monument. A brass band played the Marseillaise.
To limit disruptions amid ongoing opposition to Macron and his contested pension reforms, police banned gatherings around the area of the ceremony in the French capital, and in Lyon where the president will travel later in the day.
Authorities are being vigilant that a “casserolade ” or the loud banging of pots and pans in protest will not distract from the memorial ceremonies.
In Lyon, Macron is paying tribute to the French Resistance movement and one of its leaders, Jean Moulin. Macron is visiting Montluc prison, where Moulin was detained and tortured by the Gestapo.