French president coming alone to White House

French President Francois Hollande addresses a news conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris, in this January 14, 2014 file photo. [Photo/Agencies]

WASHINGTON - White House officials are giving a dismissive Gallic shrug to French President Francois Hollande's personal drama and preparing a state visit to showcase strong US-French cooperation on a host of global priorities.

Hollande, 59, who just broke up with his longtime partner after an alleged affair with a much younger actress, arrives solo on Monday to begin two days of pomp and ceremony including a high-profile visit to Thomas Jefferson's Monticello estate.

It will be the first state visit hosted by US President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama in nearly 2-1/2 years, since South Korea's president visited in October 2011.

Hollande's split with journalist Valerie Trierweiler, who was considered the French first lady, prompted some anxiety initially at the White House since both Hollande and Trierweiler were named on the official statement announcing the visit.

But as with most things involving the "no-drama" Obama White House, officials quickly adjusted and are preparing to fete a solo Hollande at a state dinner on Tuesday night.

Officials looking for a previous experience like this need only look back to 2007 when then-President George W. Bush played host to his French counterpart at the time, Nicolas Sarkozy, at an official dinner. Sarkozy had just split from his wife, Cecilia.

"It shouldn't change anything and it won't," Anita McBride, who was chief of staff to first lady Laura Bush, said of Hollande's visit. "He's asked the people of France to respect his privacy, and I assume he means that for Americans to respect that too."

At a time when American relations with Europe have been tested by revelations of National Security Agency eavesdropping and, more recently, a US diplomat's secretly recorded expletive to dismiss the European Union, US-French relations have been productive.

This doesn't mean Hollande is happy about the eavesdropping.

Hollande told Time magazine that this is a "a difficult moment, not just between France and the United States but also between Europe and the United States" because of spying practices that "should never have existed."