Saudi Gazette

JEDDAH — The French Consulate General celebrated the 14th of July, the French National Day, at the residence of the Consul General here, on Saturday.

The celebration started with the national anthems of France and Saudi Arabia, then the French Consul General Mostafa Mihraje delivered a speech that stressed on the strength of the Saudi-French bilateral relations through the different cooperations such as the previous visit of Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman to France and the upcoming visit of the President of France Emmanuel Macron to Saudi Arabia.

This national celebration gathered distinguished dignitaries, Foreign Ministry officials, Consuls General, French community, journalists, and businessmen.

Cultural Attaché at the French Consulate General Karim Maatoug noted: “Every year since 1790, the French people have been celebrating Bastille Day around our shared values: Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité (which means Freedom, Equality, Fraternity).”

Maatoug added: “In Jeddah, the 14th of July celebrations are very much anticipated because it’s an occasion for the French communities from France and abroad to come together as a nation.”

On French-Saudi cooperation, Maatoug said: “The French-Saudi cooperation has been thriving these past few years. As cultural attaché in Jeddah, I have been supporting Saudi artists like the artists who were sent to France in residency programs at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris: Abdulrahman Mohammed, Arwa Albanawi, and Abdulrahman Gazzaz. Also inviting French professionals and head of institutions to Jeddah to meet with Saudi artists and Saudi cultural institutions. The French-Saudi cooperation is not only about culture but also about universities, education, archeology, tourism, heritage, and we are very eager to develop more and more projects on those topics between France and Saudi Arabia.”

The National Day of France is also known as The Bastille Day and “la Fête nationale” which is celebrated on the 14th of July each year.

This day is the anniversary of the Storming of the Bastille in 1789, as well as the “Fête de la Fédération” which celebrated the unity of the French people on the 14th of July, 1790.

Celebrations for this day are held throughout France. The oldest and largest regular military parade in Europe is held on the morning of 14 July, on the Champs-Élysées in Paris in front of the president of the Republic, along with other French officials and foreign guests.