Ambassador: 'Cork was France's first choice for pairing'
Cork was the French government's first choice for pairing as part of Ireland's Presidency of the Council of the European Union. As part of Ireland's tenure as president, each county has been paired with a different EU member state, with Cork being paired with France.
France's ambassador to Ireland, Céline Place, said that the embassy pushed hard for the country to be paired with Cork.
"There are very close connections between Cork and France," she said, "with the second largest French community in Ireland outside Dublin."
She also said that the Celtic Interconnector project - which will see approximately 10% of Ireland's energy needs being met with French-produced power - was another important consideration for pushing for the pairing. The cable will run from Knockraha in east Cork and La Martyre in Brittany.
Ambassador Place said that there is strong connections between Cork and France.
One quarter of the French nationals registered in Ireland live in Cork, and the city is the only one in Ireland outside of Dublin which will host polling stations as part of next year's French presidential elections, which are due to take place in April and May.
Cork is also home to the most active branch of Alliance Française - a French language and cultural charity - outside of Dublin. Over 100 language assistants have been seconded to Irish schools to assist teachers, with a considerable number in Cork.
The connections Cork shares with Brittany were also highlighted. Cork is twinned with Rennes, Brittany's capital, while around the county there are over 50 villages twinned with towns in France, including a number in Brittany, such as Kinsale with Antibes, Ballincollig with Saclay, and Carrigaline with Guidel.
"I've travelled a little bit around France in my short time but up in Brittany there is a particularly strong relationship, the connectivity with Cork and with Ireland generally is very important to the Bretons," said Alison Milton, Ireland's Ambassador to France.
Milton joined Place for the duration of her visit to Cork. Both ambassadors visited Cork between Saturday 17 October and Tuesday 19 October on a tour to raise awareness of the European presidency.
On Monday they visited the City Library on Grand Parade, Scoil Chríost Rí - where they spoke to students about the presidency, the EU, and about diplomacy - the Tyndall Institute, where they were given a tour of projects with joint Irish-French involvement, and a farm outside Cork where Franco-Irish agricultural connections were highlighted.
They finished Monday with a meeting with the Lord Mayor of Cork, Cllr Damien Boylan and Mayor of the County of Cork Cllr Bernard Moynihan at Cork City Hall.
On Tuesday 20 October they travelled to Ringaskiddy to meet with ferry operators who manage routes to France from Cork, as well as to Haulbowline Naval Base to discuss joint Franco-Irish maritime security issues.
This article was produced with the support of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme funded by Coimisiún na Meán.