On May 31, an inspiring and substantive discussion in the field of foreign cooperation took place today in the building of the Regional Office of the Pilsen Region. The Ambassador of France to the Czech Republic, H.E. Alexis Dutertre, together with the Attaché for Science and Research Véronique Debord-Lazaro, arrived for an official meeting with the Region’s Governor Rudolf Špoták and the Vice Governor Petr Vanka, who is responsible for regional development, IT and European affairs. The meeting concluded with a common interest in identifying a French region to establish close cooperation with the Pilsen Region. The Pilsen Region has had no partner region in France since 2016.
The meeting of the representatives of the Pilsen Region’s management was substantive and factual from the very beginning. It developed from the recent visit of the French Ambassador H.E. Alexis Dutertre to the meeting of the Czech-French Chamber at the TechTower technology centre in Pilsen. The French ambassador also emphasized how significant the economic presence of France is in the Pilsen Region and mentioned the active cooperation with the local University of West Bohemia. “In the field of industrial production, we have 5,000 companies in the Czech Republic, which is a stronger representation than in Austria, Hungary, Portugal and even more than in India or Korea. That is why our presence here is so important and we want to develop it further,” H.E. Alexis Dutertre told the management representatives of the Pilsen Region.
“Relations at the diplomatic level or at the level of cultural and tourism cooperation are important, however, they have a much stronger and more solid foundation when it comes to economic links. I firmly believe that we will find common points where we will be able to expand and strengthen this connectivity and cooperation,” said the Governor R. Špoták, adding that the Pilsen Region is interested in specific close cooperation with one of the French regions, as it used to be in the past. “We would like to cooperate with such a region where all segments for possible cooperation will be represented - from high schools and universities, through cultural institutions, companies to science and research,” said the Vice Governor Petr Vanka.
Both sides see common points for further cooperation in jointly promoting the necessity of nuclear energy and in the area of infrastructure, which consists mainly in building high-speed rail lines. In this context, the Governor Rudolf Špoták informed the French party about the current negotiations on the possible construction of a gigafactory in the Pilsen Region. He said that he was also pleased that there was a renewed interest in a high-speed rail link between Prague and Munich, which could be a “fast supply channel” in the economic area, as it would reduce the journey to four hours. There is also interest in cooperation in the area of PPP projects.
The Governor Rudolf Špoták together with Vice Governor Petr Vanka also promised to participate in a meeting organised by the French party called RENDEZ-VOUS À LA FRANÇAISE, where not only representatives of companies, but also schools, universities and science and research will meet. This is to bring all these spheres together to ensure greater motivation and mobility for the use of educated professionals in the economic field and in the development of science and research.
“I appreciate today’s inspiring and substantive discussion and I believe that our cooperation will continue in this spirit,” concluded Rudolf Špoták.