French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe will make a visit to Romania “in the near future” to strengthen the Romanian-French relations, said Romania’s Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu.

Grindeanu made the announcement in Paris, on June 8, after the meeting with his French counterpart in Paris.

“I invited the French Prime Minister to Romania. We share common political experiences, if I can call them that. He also comes from the local government. He will visit Romania in the near future, to strengthen the Romanian-French relations,” said Romania’s Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu.

During the meeting, Sorin Grindeanu congratulated Édouard Philippe for taking over the mandate. He argued that the successful election of President Emmanuel Macron and the formation of the new Government represent a chance for the relaunch of the European project, according to a statement from the Romanian Government.

The two officials discussed the excellent relations between the two countries, as well as the prospects for intensifying cooperation, especially on an economic level. The two prime ministers agreed to create intergovernmental mechanisms to deepen cooperation in areas such as energy, infrastructure, agriculture, or digital economy.

The two also discussed security and defense in the EU. “We are in favor of advancing a more consistent EU profile on security and defense. This construction must be complementary to NATO," said the head of the Romanian Government.

During the talks, the French Prime Minister said that France supports Romania's efforts to achieve lifting the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism, as well as join the Schengen Area.

Sorin Grindeanu’s two-day visit to France, which ended today, aimed to strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries as well as the economic relations. The bilateral trade is on an upward trend. It stood last year at around EUR 8 billion, 10% more than in 2015.

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Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com

(photo source: Gov.ro)