On June 29 through July 1, 2010, the Days of the Partner City of Bordeaux were run in St.Petersburg, following the program of Year of Russia–France-2010. In this regard, the official delegation of Bordeaux visited St.Petersburg, headed by A. Juppe, City Mayor, former Prime Minister of France.
On June 29 through July 1, 2010, the Days of the Partner City of Bordeaux were run in St.Petersburg, following the program of Year of Russia–France-2010. In this regard, the official delegation of Bordeaux visited St.Petersburg, headed by A. Juppe, City Mayor, former Prime Minister of France.
On June 29, Helene Carrere d’Encausse, Permanent Secretary of the National French Academy, lectured in the Reading Room of Russian National Library on “Glory of French Culture in Tsarist Russia”, with the participation of the Wine Academy in Bordeaux. Welcoming speeches to the participants gave: A.V. Likhomanov, Deputy Director General of National Library, A. Juppe, and N. de Courcolle, Chancellor of Wine Academy in Bordeaux.
In the morning of June 30, St.Petersburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry hosted a seminar on trade and economic cooperation of St.Petersburg and Bordeaux. Business delegation was led by B. Lacoste, Vice-President of Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce. On the French side, the seminar was attended by representatives from the following industries: food production, fashion, consulting services in the areas of environment protection, management of risks related with chemicals, production of paints and varnishes.
On this day, V.I. Matvienko, Governor of St.Petersburg, met with A. Juppe. During the conversation, V.I. Matvienko mentioned the main priorities in bilateral cooperation: estavlishing the ties in the area of architecture and cultural heritage conservation (Bordeaux is also listed by UNESCO as World Heritage), in social, youth-related, and cluster policy. Matvienko invited Bordeaux to attend the St.Petersburg International Innovation Forum in autumn of 2010.
After the meeting in Smolny, A. Juppe spoke to the students of St.Petersburg State University. His lecture on "Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development in the Face of Financial Recession" was held at the Faculty of International Relations. After the lecture, A. Juppe took part in the ceremony of signing the agreement on cooperation between the St.Petersburg State University and the University of Montesquieu (Bordeaux 4).
A real gift for the Petersburgers was a concert of the National Orchestra of Bordeaux, which was performed on June 30 in the White Hall of Grand Palace in Peterhof, within the framework of the festival “St.Petersburg Palaces”.
On July 1, the agreement was signed between the French Institute and Alliance Française Bordeaux at the French Institute, in the presence of the Mayor, as well as the agreement on establishment the ties between the St.Petersburg School № 318 and College Cheverusse from Bordeaux. In addition, A. Juppe handed scholarships to the staff and students of the French Institute.
News source: Committee for External Relations of St.Petersburg