An exchange festival was held in Montreuil city, on the outskirts of Paris, on June 6 to strengthen friendship and solidarity between Vietnamese and French people and associations.
More than 60 Vietnamese, French, French-Vietnamese organisations and associations active in various fields such as economics, culture, education-training and humanitarian aid participated in the event.
The programme, which is entering its second year, was first held in 2012 in Choisy le Roi by the Vietnamese Embassy in France and the Montreuil government.
Ambassador Nguyen Ngoc Son highlighted the close-knit relationship between Vietnam and France , which has been reinforced by people-to-people exchanges.
The associations have run a number of activities to support Vietnam in its development path and international integration process, he said.
He noted that the projects in various fields such as culture, vocational training, health, environment, poverty reduction and war recovery have helped to improve local living standards and human resources.
Mayor of Montreuil city, Patrice Bessac, said time could not erode the friendship between Vietnam and France, which was based on mutual respect and understanding.
A plenary session was held as part of the event to disseminate the image of Vietnam in France and enhance coordination among associations to heal the pains of war.
The festival also includes a seminar, culture exchanges, Vietnamese traditional dishes, handicrafts and souvenirs, lion dancing, an “ao dai” fashion show, and martial artsdisplays.
(VNA)