Biden enters a new type of tango with Paris

The smiles will be wide, the silverware glittering and the toasts will be to alliance and fraternité.

Showing off a White House decked out for the holidays, President Joe Biden will host his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron for the first state dinner of his administration in what is planned to be a festive tribute to the United States’ oldest ally.

But behind the outward good cheer, growing tensions surround their bilateral meeting Thursday.

The war in Ukraine — now in its tenth month and with no signs of abating — has...