Rustam Minnikhanov meets First Deputy Mayor of Marseille Jean Roatta

On March 22, at the Marseille City Hall, Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov, who is on a two-day working visit in France (March 21-22, 2019), met First Deputy Mayor of Marseille Jean Roatta.

Minnikhanov thanked Roatta for the meeting and for the attention paid to Tatarstan as one of the Russian regions.

He said that he has visited France many times. Tatarstan has gained good experience in working with French companies, Minnikhanov said.

According to him, Tatarstan as one of the leading and industrially developed regions of Russia may be of interest to French business with its potential in the field of energy and petrochemistry, automotive and aircraft Industry, machine building, IT and other high technology, engineering, medicine, construction and other branches of industry.

Minnikhanov said that he visited Airbus Helicopters yesterday, where he got acquainted with helicopter models and flew in one of the helicopters as a passenger and saw Marseille at a height.

“I am sure that contacts between our regions will be strengthened,” Minnikhanov said. “And direct flights between Moscow and Marseille will also play a role in bringing our ties closer.” 

Minnikhanov invited Roatta to pay a visit to Tatarstan.

The meeting also discussed issues of tolerance in the modern world, the peaceful coexistence of representatives of different faiths.

In his turn, Roatta said that he has always admired Russia, and promised to visit Tatarstan and Kazan this year. He confirmed that direct flights between Marseille and Moscow are operated five times a week. Moreover, another airline also intends to carry out direct flights between Moscow and Marseille twice a week. “We have special relations with Russia,” he said and noted that mutually beneficial ties could be established between Tatarstan as a Russian region and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.