Thurday, 25 November 2021, Paris, French Republic: In the French capital, the President of the German Federal Council (Bundesrat) Bodo Ramelow met his counterpart Gérard Larcher, President of the Senate of the French Republic, at the Senate’s official residence.
With his trip, Ramelow accepted an invitation by the Senate President Larcher, and continued on the footsteps of a long tradition of mutual visits. Before the exchange was limited to contacts by telephone and video conference since 2020 due to the pandemic, the Senate President had last visited the Bundesrat in 2018 with a delegation at the invitation of the then President Michael Müller. In 2019, the then President of the Bundesrat Daniel Günther travelled to Paris. The meeting serves to foster Franco-German relations and institutional exchange between the Bundesrat and the Senate.
Bundesrat President Bodo Ramelow was welcomed to his residence with military honours by the President of the French Senate, Gérard Larcher. Ramelow serves likewise as Premier of Thuringia in Central Germany. In Germany, the federal state premiers rotate in the chairmanship of the Federal Council.
Senate President Gérard Larcher, Federal Council President Bodo Ramelow and the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to France, Dr. Hans-Dieter Lucas, used the visit for political talks, in particularly the coordination of the pandemic, European integration, and people-to-people exchanges.
During his visit, Bundesrat President Bodo Ramelow signed the Golden Book of the Senate. He also took part in the plenary session in the VIP gallery.
For further information
Governement of the Free State of Thuringia: https://www.staatskanzlei-thueringen.de/medienservice/veranstaltungsberichte/detailseite/besuch-des-senats-der-franzoesischen-republik
French Senate: http://www.senat.fr
French Embassy in Germany (HE Ambassador Anne-Marie Descôtes): https://de.ambafrance.org German Embassy in France (HE Ambassador Dr. Hans-Dieter Lucas): https://allemagneenfrance.diplo.de/fr-de/vertretungen/botschaft
