On June 11 to 15, 2010, a Russian National Exhibition will be held at Paris' Grand Palais. It is a key event in an ambitious programme to mark the Year of Russia in France and the Year of France in Russia initiated by the Russian and French presidents.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and French Prime Minister Francois Fillon will attend the ceremonial opening of the exhibition timed to coincide with the celebration of Russia Day. The exhibition will bring together leading Russian companies, both countries' top functionaries and heads of some of the Russian regions and cities.
The main objective of the exhibition is to demonstrate the progress achieved in Russian-French cooperation, to promote the strategic partnership and also trade, economic, investment, inter-regional, social and humanitarian ties between Russia and France. The exhibition also aims to consolidate efforts in the development of innovative products.
The exhibition is expected to become a site to be used by Russian and French business people to promote new initiatives aimed at expanding cooperation in the high technology sector.
The main subjects of the expositions match the key lines of the two countries' bilateral trade and economic cooperation:
Main sections of the exposition:
Russian-French economic cooperation (industrial cooperation, high technology and innovative products);Russian regions' export potential (prospects for the two countries' inter-regional cooperation, investment projects and tourism);the arts and science.
The display of exhibits is based on major investment projects, which Russian and French companies have been jointly implementing in space exploration, aircraft and helicopter building, the automotive industry, the energy sector and telecommunications.
The Sukhoi Company will present its programme for creating a family of Russian medium-haul Sukhoi Superjet 100 liners, which is being implemented in cooperation with the world's leading manufacturers, including a dozen French companies.
Oboronprom (Russian Helicopters) will display helicopters as the centrepiece of its stand and a SaM-146 engine that was jointly developed by Russian and French engineers for the Sukhoi Superjet 100 liners.
The Irkut Corporation will present its programme for developing a medium-haul MC-21 passenger liner. Some of the liner's systems are being developed in cooperation with leading French companies.
The Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) will present projects which it is implementing jointly with the European Space Agency (ESA) and the French Space Agency: the construction of a launching site in Kourou, French Guiana, and satellite manufacturing. Special attention will be paid to the development of space telecommunications devices.
Rostekhnologii (Russian Technologies, a state-run company) will bring together many industrial heavyweights at its stand. AvtoVAZ together with Renault will present their project to develop, manufacture and sell cars. Oboronprom will demonstrate its launch vehicles that have unique energy characteristics, which could be used for any class of space rockets.
Russian energy companies will present their major projects. Gazprom will display projects to develop new gas fields and the gas pipeline infrastructure, both of which have good prospects (the North Stream and South Stream gas pipeline projects, the development of the Shtokman gas condensate field and the Sakhalin 2 oil and gas project). Transneft, a major oil company, will draw attention to cutting-edge technology for transporting crude and petroleum products. Rosatom (Russian Nuclear Power Corporation, a state-run company) will focus on promoting international cooperation on the peaceful use of nuclear power with the development of new nuclear reactors and safety technologies.
A special emphasis will be made on expanding partnership between Russian and French centres of science and culture. The Russian Academy of Sciences will demonstrate the results of its basic studies, including those conducted in conjunction with the French Academy of Sciences, in the fields of energy conservation and the environment. The collective stand of Russia's leading universities, research institutions, and small and mid-sized innovative businesses will display viable developments in nano- and biotechnologies, medicine and pharmacology, the environment, analytical instrument-making and new materials.
The participation of more than 15 members of the Russian Federation and sister cities in the exhibition will offer additional opportunities to expand cooperation between the two countries.
For example, the Ivanovo Region will present a project on its plan to create an inter-regional textile and industrial complex that will subsequently develop into Russia's most competitive innovative textile centre. The Kaluga Region will give examples of the successful implementation of joint Russian-French projects, such as the car-assembly plant opened by Peugeot-Citroen and Mitsubishi in April 2010, and will also present the potential for innovation of the town of Obninsk, a research hub. The stand of the Chechen Republic will be dedicated to the positive changes made in the republic's social and economic development and the investment opportunities that it offers. The Kaliningrad Region will present its potential for growth in industry and tourism. The stand for the Niznhy Novgorod Region will focus on the further development of its sports infrastructure, primarily the stadium project developed as part of the preparation for Russia's bid to host the World Cup football finals in 2018 or 2022. The joint stand of the Sverdlovsk Region's industrial companies will display mining equipment, products of the aircraft, railway and electrical engineering sectors. The Ulyanovsk Region will display its economic potential, investment opportunities, and its cooperation with French companies. A project titled "Ulyanovsk Is Russia's Aircraft Capital" will be presented at the exhibition.
The Russian National Exhibition's business programme titled "Russia and France: a Single Economic and Humanitarian Space" includes conferences, thematic round tables, press conferences and presentations.
There are plans to sign, as part of the round table discussion "Russia-France: A High-Tech Sector. Plans for the Future," a memorandum of understanding that will cover key lines of cooperation between the Russian Aircraft Industries Union and the French Aerospace Industries Association (GIFAS).
The business programme's key objective is to help expand trade, economic, scientific and technological contacts between Russia and France, to diversify forms and areas of bilateral cooperation and also to promote the educational, cultural and humanitarian programmes which are being implemented by the two countries.
Other activities on the business programme include round tables, such as "Energy Cooperation" and "Russia-France: Three Centuries of Scientific and Cultural Ties" and a seminar "Russia-France: Prospects for Aquatic Cooperation," etc.
The Russian Industry and Trade Ministry is the organiser of the exhibition.