FRENCH DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE PUTS HIGH PRIORITY ON

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PARIS 005417

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

STATE FOR EB/IFD/ODF AND IO/T

STATE PASS USTR FOR BALASSA/BLISS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SCUL EAID ETRD KIPR FR PREL UNESCO
SUBJECT: FRENCH DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE PUTS HIGH PRIORITY ON
"CULTURE"

REF A. Paris 4568


B. Paris 5146


1. (SBU) Summary. At the GoF's' annual conference on
France's development priorities, Foreign Minister Douste-
Blazy underlined the importance of a European identity in
forming development policy and cited the support that
effective policies could bring to broader anti-terror
efforts. Both Douste-Blazy and Culture Minister Renaud
Donnedieu de Vabres highlighted the important role of
culture in French foreign and development policy. End
summary.

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Douste-Blazy addresses "the troops"
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2. (SBU) In his address to the 19-20 July conference,
Minister Douste-Blazy stressed the role of development
assistance and cultural politics in foreign policy--
declaring that culture, international assistance and
diplomacy were all key elements of France's foreign policy.
Douste-Blazy urged better coordination so that French
international assistance activities project one coherent
message. Douste-Blazy outlined three great challenges for
France's international development assistance:

--Creating European identity: in the wake of the
rejected EU Constitution in France, Douste-Blazy stated that
all of France should actively reflect on how it projects its
development assistance, i.e. alone or within the EU. Also
part of this debate is how the EU interposes itself between
the nation-state and globalization. The upcoming UK-hosted
summit in October to analyze the future of Europe is an
opportunity to ponder these questions;

--Terrorism and diversity: Following the London
bombings, Douste-Blazy meditated on the effects of terrorism
on French/European culture and politics. Douste-Blazy urged
French citizens to remain faithful to values of tolerance
and international service and to advance intercultural
dialogue. Although diversity is often a target of
terrorists, he said France should remain steadfast in its
support of cultural diversity and humanist values;

--Ensuring that development aid strengthens security:
Douste-Blazy said the fight against poverty not only
demonstrated compassion but helped make the world a safer
and more secure place. France has long advanced the need to
increase development aid and Douste-Blazy said he was
pleased that Tony Blair and the G8 had raised the profile of
this issue.


3. (SBU) As former physician and minister of Health, Douste-
Blazy also highlighted health concerns in the developing
world, including AIDS and epidemics of treatable diseases
(for lack of generic medicine access). Douste-Blazy lauded
the unilateral actions of U.S. President Bush and Brazilian
President Lula in the area of pharmaceutical outreach in sub-
Saharan Africa. He held up these countries as an example
for France.


4. (SBU) Douste-Blazy unfavorably contrasted European
efforts in research and development and technology with
those of the U.S. Following a recent visit to the United
States, Douste-Blazy said he was amazed by U.S. spending of
USD 100 billion on nanotechnology and biotechnology "at a
moment where Europe is incapable of an integrated research
policy". In the face of job relocation and other
globalization worries, Douste-Blazy hailed the U.S. focus on
"green power" and technologies of the future as solid
economic investments.

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DOUSTE-BLAZY ON GLOBAL CHALLENGES
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5. (SBU) Douste-Blazy took the opportunity to outline three
major priorities of French foreign policy dealing with
global challenges:

--Increasing development aid to combat economic
inequalities;

--Leading a "dialogue between civilizations" to promote
cultural diversity and respect for universal principles in
an era of cultural cleavages;

--Improving the capacity of France to produce and
diffuse knowledge.


6. (U) Douste-Blazy also cited statistics regarding the U.S.
audiovisual industry influence and its consequences for
French cultural influence: Hollywood studios, he said,
produce eighty-five percent of films shown across the world
and nine of the ten most-translated authors in the world are
Anglophones. This domination of audiovisual and even
printed media by Anglophones is an economic as well as
cultural concern for France. In a society plagued by high
unemployment, Douste-Blazy noted that the cultural sector
provides 439,000 jobs in France and 2.5 percent of European
employment. He singled out tourism as a golden opportunity
for French cultural diplomacy, as France is the number-one
tourist destination in the world.

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ATTRACTING MORE STUDENTS TO FRANCE
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7. (SBU) Another main goal of French foreign policy is to
strengthen the position of France in higher education.
Douste-Blazy said he would like to see France become the
leading foreign student destination. He expressed a strong
desire for France to welcome upper-level students in the
domains of science, management, finance and other technical
fields. Douste-Blazy said the ramifications of French
success in attracting foreign students and researchers were
not only the improvement of the image of the country
internationally, but the success of its economic
development.

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CULTURAL POLICY: IDENTITY, EUROPE AND EMPLOYMENT
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8. (SBU) French Minister of Culture and Communication
Donnedieu de Vabres reflected on the importance of cultural
diplomacy in an era of globalization: France must remain
open to the world without renouncing its unique identity and
culture. Donnedieu de Vabres spoke of the threat of
standardization, contrasting it with the French desire to
see cultural identities maintained in a framework of
pluralism and mutual respect. Donnedieu de Vabres said
France's cultural diplomacy is currently a key component of
the government's political strategy designed to respond to
France's and Europe's current identity crisis.


9. (SBU) Other GOF officials, including minister-delegate of
European Affairs Catherine Colonna (former Chirac press
spokesperson) also proclaimed that cultural diversity was a
priority for French foreign policy. Brigitte Girardin,
minister-delegate for aid, development and francophone
communities, cited the promotion of French language and
culture as one of her major priorities. France's notion of
cultural diversity includes both exportation of French
culture and encouraging the use of the French language
abroad as well as the encouragement of multiculturalism.


10. (SBU) GOF officials at the conference also cited the
UNESCO convention on cultural diversity, a key component of
French cultural diversity efforts. France has been the
driving force behind this proposed convention, which will
recognize its long-sought goal of a "cultural exception",
i.e., the uniqueness of cultural goods and the right of each
nation to define its own cultural politics. Donnedieu de
Vabres, Douste-Blazy and other GOF officials stated that the
GOF is strongly campaigning for the adoption of this
cultural diversity convention by this fall. The passage of
the UNESCO convention would mark the codification of
cultural diversity into international law.


11. (SBU) Donnedieu de Vabres proposed three initiatives for
a European cultural policy:
-- The establishment of a permanent Parliament of
Culture, modeled after the European Cultural Ministers'
meeting held May 2-3, 2005 in Paris (REF A);

-- The creation of a European Culture Charter: To date,
nineteen European culture ministers have adopted the
declaration formulated at the May 2005 Paris meeting of
European culture ministers. France is advocating the
adoption of a legally binding document that resembles the
pending UNESCO charter on cultural diversity;

-- The advancement of European cultural programs that
could include the designation of new European heritage sites
and the financing of subtitling of films to promote
"European" creations. Minister-delegate Colonna highlighted
an ongoing French project to create a European digital
library to compete with a digital library project
spearheaded recently by Google, the Internet search engine.

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Comment
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12. (SBU) The UNESCO debate on the Convention for Cultural
Diversity is not the only arena in which France is seeking
to strengthen its position on cultural issues. The GOF
appears to be strengthening its efforts to use culture as a
means to leverage France's influence in the world,
particular among recipients of development assistance.
Emphasizing an alleged "solidarity" with developing
countries, France uses the "soft power" of the cultural
diversity issue and its education programs to boost its
authority on the world stage.

HOFMANN