France Wants to Further Develop Economic Cooperation With Russia – Ambassador

VLADIVOSTOK (Sputnik) – France wants to further develop economic cooperation with Russia, French Ambassador to Russia Sylvie Bermann told reporters adding that French President aimed to intensify Russia-EU ties.

“We have made the second biggest investments [among EU countries] in the Russian economy in 2017. France is also one of the biggest employers in Russia. The trade between Russia and France is highly dynamic, it increased by 26 percent … We want to further develop our cooperation,” Bermann said on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF).

The ambassador pointed out that France focused on cooperation with small and medium businesses.

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Bermann noted that French President Emmanuel Macron sought intensification of ties between Russia and the European Union.

“We think it’s important to increase relations between the EU and Russia, and between France and Russia as well. He’s [Macron] been direct on that,” the ambassador said.

Bermann also stated that Russia and France had a lot of areas of bilateral cooperation. He mentioned the issue of cybersecurity noting that it was something France planned to work on and engage a dialogue with Russia on that.

In addition, he voiced concerns regarding the use of chemical arms, the issues on implementation of the Minsk Agreement in Ukraine and the issues in Syria.

The fourth EEF started on Tuesday and will last through Thursday on Russky Island in Vladivostok. Rossiya Segodnya International Information Agency is the general information partner of the forum.