JEDDAH, 16 July 2006 — About 500 people gathered in the garden of the residence of France’s consul general on Friday to watch on big screen televisions the Bastille Day festivities live from Paris.
French Consul General in Jeddah Issa Maraut welcomed the visitors and highlighted France’s historic relationship with Saudi Arabia.
France’s relations with the Arab state precede the unification of the Kingdom in 1932. “The Consulate General of Jeddah was established 167 years ago in 1839 and France was among the first states to establish diplomatic relations, in 1926, with the Saudi state,” said Maraut.
The ties between the two countries were further strengthened by the visit in March of French President Jacques Chirac. Crown Prince Sultan, deputy prime minister and minister of defense and aviation, is preparing to depart for Paris on Wednesday for a state visit. The consul general underscored his country’s support for the dynamic social and economic changes occurring under the leadership of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.
Maraut pointed to French-Saudi projects as examples of an ongoing strong relationship, including contracts at the King Abdul Aziz Airport in Jeddah, and educational exchanges at the university level in areas of law, medicine, engineering and archaeology.
Maraut, who began his position as Jeddah’s consul general on Sept. 8, took the opportunity to introduce himself and pledge to adhere to his key role: protecting, assisting and being accessible to French nationals in the region. He thanked all French professional associations for their support and assistance to the French community in Jeddah.
Consuls general from Britain, Italy and Iraq, as well as other members of the diplomatic corps, attended the celebration. Members of the French-Saudi business community were also in attendance. The guest of honor was the Saudi Foreign Ministry’s General Director of the Western Section, Dr. Abdul Aziz Al-Suwayegh, who is responsible for relations with foreign nationals in the region.
