June 16, 2008: Premier To Hold Talks with French President;Press conference at 3.25 p.m.

On Monday, June 16, 2008, Czech Premier Mirek Topolánek will meet President Nicolas Sarkozy of the French Republic for talks.
Nicolas Sarkozy will be visiting Prague on the occasion of the summit of the heads of government of the Visegrad Group countries. As a rule, the head of state or government of the country taking over presidency of the European Union in the next six months is invited to attend the gathering. This close cooperation between the V4 Group and the country presiding the Council of the European Union guarantees connection of the agendas of the two organizations as well as better coordination of regional cooperation.
The main topics of the talks between the French President and Czech Premier will be the agenda of the follow-up presidencies of the Council of the European Union, inauguration of the Czech-French Economic Year, a project aimed at promoting mutual trade exchange, cooperation and investments. Under debate will also be issues concerning energy and regional cooperation with Eastern Europe within the framework of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP).
At the end of their negotiations, Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek and President Nicolas Sarkozy of the French Republic will sign a declaration and an action plan on strategic cooperation between both countries that will constitute a basis for their long-term mutual cooperation.
2.25 p.m. – photo opportunity (before the talks)
3.20 p.m. – photo opportunity (signing of bilateral documents)
3.25 p.m. – press conference

Venue: Kramáø Villa, Gogolova Street 1, Prague 6

Please Note!
Due to the enormous interest of journalists you should come to the venue at least 30 minutes before the event. We would also like to tell you that only five Czech and five French photographers or cameramen will be allowed to attend the first photo opportunity due to security reasons and limited space. Ten Czech and ten French photographers/cameramen will have access to the second photo opportunity. There will be no limits to the attendance of journalists at the press conference. Thank you for your understanding

Press Department of the Office of the Government of the Czech Republic