The Diplomat
The French ambassador in Madrid, Jean-Michel Casa, highlighted on Wednesday the joint contribution of France and Spain to the elaboration of the European recovery plan in the aftermath of the pandemic.
Jean-Michel Casa hosted a reception at his residence in the Spanish capital on the occasion of France’s National Day, which was attended by a small number of people due to COVID-19 constraints.
Among those present were the President of the Constitutional Court, Juan José González Rivas; the Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Reyes Maroto; and the Minister of Culture and Sports, Miquel Iceta; as well as other senior officials from different ministries, especially the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and ambassadors from European countries.
Before the national anthems of Spain and France and that of the European Union were played by the Guardia Civil brass band, the ambassador gave a speech in which he highlighted the “exceptional relationship” that unites the two countries in all areas, and took the opportunity to thank the work of the health and military personnel fighting the pandemic, who were represented at the reception.
He referred to the values of solidarity and generosity developed by these professionals and affirmed that it is precisely on 14 July that the French celebrate the values of liberty, fraternity and equality. “At a time, he said, when populism is seeking to weaken the foundations of representative democracy, the promises made more than 200 years ago by the French Revolution have not lost their relevance today.
Casa added that these fundamental values are at the heart of the relationship between France and Spain. “Both countries are convinced that Europe is the contemporary horizon of our progress. Our countries enjoy an extraordinarily close relationship. Our ties of interdependence are expressed in many areas, including the economic, industrial and commercial spheres, since France remains Spain’s number one commercial client, its second largest supplier and its fourth largest foreign investor.
The ambassador recalled that 3,000 French companies are present in Spain and 1,200 Spanish companies in France, which is evidence of the close relationship between the two countries.
He also stressed that, in the wake of the pandemic, Spain and France had contributed to the drawing up of a very ambitious European recovery plan. We can rejoice,” he said, “that the plan adopted corresponds to our wishes and is in keeping with the current economic and social urgency.
Jean-Michel Casa indicated that France and Spain support the rapid implementation of national recovery plans financed by the EU, as well as an ambitious policy towards the southern neighbourhood, in terms of migration issues, with a policy of deeper cooperation towards the countries of origin and transit towards the EU.
After referring to cultural and educational ties, with 3,000 inter-university agreements, he reiterated that the harmony between the two countries was evidenced by the bilateral summit held last March, framed by the focus on memory and the Spanish Republican exile in France. He recalled that under the co-presidency of Emmanuel Macron and Pedro Sánchez, twenty ministers took part and a dozen agreements were signed, including one on dual French-Spanish nationality.
The ambassador also pointed out that, during the recent visit to Madrid by the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Yves Le Drian, it was agreed to speed up work on drafting a bilateral Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation, in order to structure the numerous areas of bilateral dialogue, within the framework of the European Union.
He pointed out that work would also be done on a common cross-border strategy to strengthen human ties and the mobility of the regions on both sides of the border.
