By Kawthar Lanbari
Manama -15 Oct. (BNA): France supports the reforms taking place in Bahrain and backs the invitation by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa for a national dialogue as the best means to overcome obstacles and political differences, the French ambassador to Bahrain has said.
“Paris also strongly condemns the acts of violence and stresses that terrorism is not a political tool,” Christian Tiesto said, adding that His Majesty’s call for the national dialogue, launched in February, is a significant step in the history of Bahrain.
“We hope that the five coalition parties that have recently suspended their participation in the Dialogue will come back and resume their participation. It is necessary for Bahrainis to find a way to agree because there is no alternative to the dialogue to reach an agreement on a formula that allows the coexistence and satisfaction of all parties no matter how different their views are. Such a goal is achievable only through dialogue,” the ambassador told Bahrain News Agency (BNA).
Tiesto stressed that violence would lead only to counter-violence and thus into a vicious circle.
“By virtue of the friendship between my country and the Kingdom of Bahrain, we sincerely urge all parties to find a way that satisfies of all parties, without frustrating any side, that makes it imperative for each party to make positive steps forward because they would be in the interest of the country,” he said.
The ambassador said that relations between Bahrain and France were “very good.”
“We work every day to strengthen them to the highest levels. As you know, His Majesty King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa paid a visit to France in July 2012 and had a very good meeting with President Hollande. The two heads of states decided on this occasion to deepen this relationship by establishing a high bilateral Franco-Bahraini committee whose text will be signed soon in Bahrain. This document covers all aspects of our relationships, be they political, economic, or in the field of education and higher education. Bahrain is a friendly country and France wishes to increase its presence in the Kingdom. Concerning foreign policy, I was able to witness that on several topics such as Mali, Syria, regional security and many other issues, our approaches are essentially the same,” he said.
Referring to the trade relations between Manama and Paris, Ambassador Tissot said that France was among the top investors in Bahrain between 2000 and 2010 in the energy, infrastructure and banking sectors
“The French investments have expanded to include the banking sector, with BNP Paribas having one of its main regional headquarters in Manama. We are present in many other sectors such as hotels (Sofitel, Novotel and Mercure) and the industrial sector that includes significant investments in the aluminum industry with Alba.
Let me also mention that respect for the environment is a constant concern for us. France has a very solid experience on how to reduce the impact of our solid waste emissions on the environment. The waste to energy project of the French CNIM company is ready to start as soon as the environmental permit is delivered by the authority in charge of the assessment of the environmental impact.”
The ambassador said that bilateral cooperation extended to the cultural and academic fields.
“The embassy and the French Alliance of Bahrain are actively involved in the cultural life of Bahrain through close collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and with local actors, such as art galleries and artists. In this perspective, the embassy has recently associated itself with the first festival of short films ‘Naqsh’; it also promotes local artists through the Bahraini-French cultural centre “Maison Jamshir” in Muharraq, in addition to the intensity of our collaboration with the Ministry of Culture in the fields of archeology, architecture and tourism,” he said.
In the educational field, France is very keen on supporting the Ministry of Education in introducing French as a second foreign language taught in the public and the private schools, the ambassador said.
“Our support consists in trainings, especially at the Alliance Française, which has just opened a state of the art language laboratory dedicated to the teachers. In parallel, the embassy has launched a programme of linguistic scholarships for outstanding students to study in France,” he said.
“More broadly, our cooperation has strengthened in the last three years. Let me give you only a few examples: the MBA delivered by the French Arabian Business School (FABS) in the framework of collaboration between the Arabian Gulf University (AGU) and the ESSEC; the multi-sector cooperation with the university of Versailles –Saint Quentin (medicine education with AGU, French teaching with the University of Bahrain; electronic and hard sciences with Bahrain Polytechnic and Ensi-Caen).”
According to the diplomat, the French presence in the Kingdom is significant.
“There are around 1,000 French nationals living in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The French School has 450 students, from various nationalities, including French and Bahrainis. In addition, there is the Alliance Française, which is a French institution that holds cultural and recreational activities that help reinforce the French presence in the Kingdom of Bahrain,” he said.
Ambassador Tissot emphasized that visa procedures for France did not constitute an impediment to Bahrainis who wanted to travel to his country.
“The procedures are easy and enable Bahrainis to obtain within a few days a visa valid for a long time. Visa procedures should not constitute an obstacle for those who want to visit France, a country that warmly welcomes Bahrainis as well as the other citizens of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC),” he said.