At a regular meeting of the Council of Rectors/ Presidents/ General Directors of the French-Russian University that took place on October 20, 2017 in Paris a decision was made on close cooperation of the FRU with the ‘Trianon dialogue’ Russian and French civil societies Forum.
The ‘Trianon dialogue’ Forum is an initiative advanced by the President of Russia Vladimir Putin and the President of France Emmanuel Macron. A joint statement on the launch of the Forum was signed on September 8, 2017 by the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian.
The purpose of the Forum is to foster rapprochement of the peoples of these two countries by deepening ties through civil societies. Among the tasks set out by the Forum are: development of links and cooperation between the Russian and French societies, including, based on an information portal, dissemination of information on bilateral relations and their history, heritage and common culture, as well as on cooperation between research centers and educational institutions, development of academic, scientific and business cooperation.
The Forums’ Supreme body is the Coordination Council (hereinafter referred to as the CC) formed on the basis of parity. The members of the CC are 15 reputable representatives of the society from each country, whose knowledge, experience and concernment are consistent with the goals and objectives of the Forum. The CC management is carried out by Russian and French co-chairs of the Forum appointed, respectively, by the President of Russia and the President of France.
The operating activities of the Forum are carried out by National Secretariats. The activities of the Russian Secretariat are supported by the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA). The activities of the French Secretariat are supported by the National Commission for Public Debate.
The Forum format provides for conducting events aimed at development of cooperation between the societies of these two countries: academic and educational projects, youth projects, projects promoting familiarization of the citizens with the history and culture of both countries,as well as events aimed at strengthening and development of companies’ business cooperation.
The Forum activities each year will focus on a new priority topic, in 2018 the name of the topic will be ‘The City of the Future’. As a part of the Gaidar Forum to be held by RANEPA in January 2018, it is planned to introduce ‘The City of the Future’ section, which will open the ‘Trianon dialogue’ Forum and will feature leading Russian and French experts.