Vice President Iliana Iotova is paying a visit to Grasse, France at the invitation of the town mayor Mayor Jerome Viaud and the local cultural association Centre d'Art des Collines de Grasse.

The visit marks the 145^th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Bulgaria and France. Bulgaria’s Vice President will attend a concert by Bulgarian opera singers. Iliana Iotova will also hold a meeting with the mayor of Grasse, which has long been twinned with Bulgaria’s Kazanlak.

Centre d’Art chairman Gilles Fuchs is a prominent patron of the arts, holder of numerous international distinctions who has been working vigorously to popularize Bulgarian culture around the world. Gilles Fuchs has played a prominent role in the development of the Varna International Ballet Competition which has, for many years, been setting world standards.