On Monday, 15 July 2013, Michael Georg Link, Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office, will join his French counterpart, Minister Delegate for European Affairs Thierry Repentin, at a high-level conference in Saarbrücken attended by representatives of both countries.

The two Franco-German cooperation commissioners Link and Repentin will chair the conference, at which high-level representatives from the cross-border region will discuss prospects and challenges for cross-border cooperation.

The conference will be hosted by Saarland Minister-President Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, who is the Commissioner of the Federal Republic of Germany for Cultural Affairs under the Treaty on Franco-German Cooperation.

High on the agenda will be health care, transport and mobility, education and training as well as the employment market. On the occasion of the conference Link and Repentin will also present a “Saarbrücken Declaration on Franco-German Cooperation in the Border Regions”.