January 25, 2006

Deputy French Consul to speak at Sacramento State

Pierre Mattot, press and communication officer for the French Consulate in San Francisco, will speak at Sacramento State about relations between France and the United States and the challenges the two countries face in a changing world. The event will start at 9 a.m., Tuesday, Feb. 7, in the Music Recital Hall in Capistrano Hall.

In his lecture, “France and the United States, Challenges and Opportunities,” Mattot will discuss the need for the two nations to come together to tackle the crisis in the Middle East, nuclear expansion in Iran and poverty in the world.

Mattot has an extensive background in foreign affairs and has been stationed in more than nine countries including Iran and Iraq during the Iran-Iraq conflict in the 1980s. While in Iraq, Mattot worked with the Iraqi Minister of Education as Attache for Cooperation and Education. He said one of his greatest accomplishments was reopening the French Embassy’s cultural department in Iran, two years after it was closed in 1986 due to tensions between Iran and France. He has also held positions in Malaysia, Turkey, Pakistan and Indonesia and has been the deputy consul in San Francisco since August 2004.

As press and communication officer, Mattot works closely with the media and general public answering questions about French news and local issues such as the recent riots in France, France’s stance of the war in Iraq and the country’s contribution to the Hurricane Katrina relief effort. He said that while France and the United States have had disagreements in the past, the two nations now have a fruitful relationship, enabling them to pursue new opportunities in the future.

For more information call the Sociology Department at (916) 278-6522. Media assistance is available from the Sacramento Public Affairs Office at (916) 278-6156.

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