Hollande lauds Qatari-French relations

President of the French Republic Francois Hollande emphasized the depth of French - Qatari relations in various political, economic and cultural fields.

This came in a statement made by the French President today during the opening ceremony of the third branch of Qatari French school (Lycee Voltaire), in the presence of HE the Minister of Culture, Arts and Heritage Dr. Hamad bin Abdulaziz Al Kuwari, HE the Minister of Education and Higher Education and Secretary General of the Supreme Council for Education Dr. Mohamed bin Abdulwahid Al Hammadi, EH the Attorney General and the chairman of Lycee Voltaire board of directors Dr. Ali bin Fitais Al Marri, French Ambassador to Qatar Eric Chevalier and members of the official delegation accompanying the French President.

French President pointed out that during his visit to Doha and agreement was signed between the two countries for the purchase of 24 RAFALE French military aircraft, adding that "the State of Qatar has shown trust in the French economy and the industry, especially the aviation industry." On the Syrian crisis, the French President said his country is trying to accomplish a transition that does not involve Bashar Al-Assad, and allows the opposition to establish dialogue with the parties of the regime, pointing to France's presence in Iraq to act against terrorism, and its diplomatic efforts to reach an agreement with Iran to ensure they do not possess nuclear weapons.

President Hollande said that he attended the opening of the second branch of this school in June 2013 stressing that the progress and the opening of the third branch happened at the initiative of the State of Qatar.

He extended greetings and thanks to the state Qatar and to HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, pointing out that the school has achieved a great success as it has more than 1,200 pupils from thirty nationality.

We want to offer in Qatar the best educational values, President Hollande said noting that the choice of Voltaire name was fantastic as he was is a source of inspiration and man who called for freedom.

He called on Jack Lang, President of the Arab World Institute in Paris to rely on the State of Qatar in the implementation of many of the projects that belong to Arab culture.

HE the Attorney General Dr. Ali bin Fitais Al Marry, who is also the school's board chairman said that Lycee Voltaire is a bridge between the Arab and French cultures, adding that it produces an open minded generation that does not deviate from the Islamic and Arab values. "This is the difficult equation that we are currently striving to realize," he said.

He added that the first branch of the school started with 54 students and that in the beginning everyone predicted that the number of students will remain little and will not exceed 100 students. "Now we open the third branch, and the number of students is about 1250, in addition to over 350 others on the waiting list," he said pointing to the school management's intention to open a fourth branch in the near future.

HE the Attorney General confirmed that the school is open to all students from all nationalities, pointing out that the school project has a lot of dimensions as the it represents a cultural depth and helps build a bridge between Arab and French cultures.

He pointed out that 45% of the school students are French which helps realizing its mission in facilitating the transfer of French culture to Arab students by native speaker. He added that the school has a distinct educational cadre, stressing that it is not seeking material gain.

On the sidelines of the ceremony, HE the Minister of Education and Higher Education and Secretary General of the Supreme Education Council Dr. Mohammed bin Abdul Wahid Al Hammadi, welcomed the opening of the school's third branch, stressing that it is an event that indicates the State's support of the communities residing Qatar.
He said that the excellent Qatari-French relations obliges us to support the French community and provide all their needs.