NEWS
On her official visit to France, the Prime Minister focused on strengthening bilateral relations
Alenka Bratušek, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, concluded her two-day visit to the French Republic. The highlights of her visit included a meeting with François Hollande, the President of the French Republic, and an investment conference which gathered over 20 managers of global French companies in the areas of infrastructure, energy, construction, banking and other sectors.
The PM began her visit to Paris with an official reception with military honours in front of the Hôtel des Invalides, and proceeded to meet representatives of Slovenians living in Paris at the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia.
At the investment conference on the second day of her visit, the PM said that such conferences are proof that the Slovenian Government is open to new foreign investments and that this conference would be a major contribution to strengthening relations between Slovenia and France. According to the PM, France is a major economic partner, while French companies are strategic partners enabling the development of the Slovenian economy. In her statement for the media, she stressed that she was very satisfied with the conference, as the French companies had shown great interest in entering the Slovenian market.
The PM also focused on strengthening political relations. She was received by the President of the French Republic, François Hollande, with whom she also discussed the situation of the financial sector in Slovenia, privatisation, strengthening economic cooperation and exchanging views before the December meeting of the European Council. In his statement for the media, Mr Hollande stressed that relations between the two countries were excellent and that he had regained the impression that Slovenia would resolve its problems successfully. The French President and the PM agreed that a European banking union should be established as soon as possible. The PM also highlighted the issue of youth, which was discussed at a conference in Paris few weeks ago, and stressed that much time and effort would have to be devoted to this topic and invited the young to participate in the discussion about their future.