Laurent Fabius, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Jean-Yves Le Drian, Minister of Defense, received, on October 31, their Russian counterparts, Sergey Lavrov and Anatoly Serdyukov, for the 11th session of the Franco-Russian Cooperation Council for Security Issues. Following that, they were received by President Hollande.

Created in 2002 on the initiative of the French and Russian heads of state, this forum brings together once a year the foreign and defense ministers of France and the Russian Federation. It is a forum for cooperation and dialogue between our two countries, Russia being a top-level partner of France.

The Franco-Russian Cooperation Council for Security Issues will provide an opportunity this year to discuss the major issues relating to European and international security, NATO-Russia cooperation on anti-missile defense, the Iranian issue, the current crises, notably in Mali and Syria, and the stabilization of Afghanistan.