“France and Greece are ready to lead together. We’ve built trust. And Thessaloniki, as a city of culture, industry, education, and a strategic location, is right at the heart of this shared future,” said the French Ambassador to Greece Laurence Auer, in an exclusive interview with the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA-MPA) released on Thursday.

In this, the Ambassador outlined the dynamic and multi-aspected relationship between France and Greece, placing particular emphasis on the strategic role of Northern Greece – and especially Thessaloniki – as a hub for defence, innovation, education, and cultural diplomacy.

“I know how important it is for the whole region to have Thessaloniki as a port of entry to the rest of Europe. But also to the region itself. At this stage I must say that we have a big asset here. We have a great General Consulate, the Institut Français de Thessalonique (IFT). We have a whole presence here,” she stressed.

At a moment when Europe is undergoing geopolitical and economic realignment, Ambassador Auer highlighted how the long-standing historical bonds between the two countries are being transformed into forward-looking strategic cooperation. “ We have celebrated three years of comprehensive strategic partnership,” she said. “ It’s a unique agreement that was signed in 2021. And since then, we have developed and developed and developed all kinds of cooperation,” she said.

Thessaloniki: A Pillar of Regional Strategy and Cooperation

Thessaloniki, Greece’s second-largest city and the capital of the northern Greek region of Macedonia, stands out as a focal point in France’s regional strategy. “ Thessaloniki is a very important hub,” the Ambassador noted. “ Not only for tourists but also regionally speaking, of a lot of activities. It’s an important place to make further progress and to integrate the economy of the Western Balkans.”
She pointed out that the French presence in Thessaloniki is not just symbolic-it is deeply strategic, spanning sectors from defence to infrastructure, energy, culture, and education. French companies are already active in Northern Greece and continue to expand their presence, especially in industrial production and supply chains.

“ For instance, Naval Group has signed agreements and is integrated in the supply chain,” Ambassador Auer explained. “ Many Greek companies in Thessaloniki, like Kafkas, are constructing electric panels for the Belharra frigates. In Florina, BT Composite is working with Naval Group on R&D projects. There is also Sunlight in Xanthi and Prisma in Alexandroupoli”.

She emphasised that this is more than a bilateral success. “ Those partners are going to allow France, of course, to build with Greece a common chain of new products… not only for Greece or for France. It is the whole European perspective which is opening.”