Allocution de S.A.R. le Grand-Duc au Business and Financial Forum Poland-Luxembourg

Mr President,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the Luxembourg Poland Business and Financial Forum here in Warsaw. The presence of the President of Poland emphasises even more the importance of our meeting and I wish to thank him for his active participation.

Today marks one of the highlights of our three day visit which began yesterday and which will continue in Krakow tomorrow. During our visit we will have the opportunity to see several sites of historic, cultural and economic importance, providing us with a deeper understanding of how Poland has developed into the dynamic and fascinating country it is today. I truly admire the energy and the optimism of the Polish people, especially in the light of the suffering you had to endure in the past.

While Poland and Luxembourg are obviously very different in size and population, we share a similar past, having too often been the target of our neighbours’ expansion policies. Our two countries have thus seen European integration as a way to secure our future. Europe has offered our countries not only a strong sense of security but also a tool to prosper economically through the principles of its Single European Market.

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Poland not only for its 10 year membership in the European Union, but also for being one of Europe’s fastest growing economies .

I welcome the excellent political and diplomatic relations between our countries. In the field of higher education, I value the scientific cooperation on telecommunications security between the Warsaw University of Technology and the University of Luxembourg as well as the numerous research and development projects, which have emerged over the years. Luxembourg can learn a great deal from Poland, the home of brilliant brains such as Nicolaus Copernicus or Frederic Chopin, just to name a few.

Business and trade relations between our two countries have been developing well over the last few years.

I would like to underline in this context the important role of the company “Arcelor-Mittal”, which is headquartered in Luxembourg and which is the largest industrial employer in both countries.

In 2013, Poland was Luxembourg’s 7th largest trading partner in Europe. There is however much more potential and it is my hope that this visit can help both Polish and Luxembourg companies to explore those opportunities. 

Luxembourg has also seen a strong economic development over the last 40 years, evolving from a steel-based to a modern, diversified and sustainable knowledge-based economy. Our aim is to become a center of excellence through research and development, innovation and international cooperation.

In the area of finance, my country offers a diversified range of sophisticated products and services. Being a small country, we don't only look at our home market but at the entire European Union. I take great pride in Luxembourg's global reach and expertise in investment funds, defining our country as the largest fund industry in the world after the US. 

But Luxembourg is more than a world class financial centre. Over the last decade, we have developed industrial activities in logistics, clean technologies, ICT and aerospace to name a few.

Today Luxembourg is an intercontinental and multimodal logistics hub in Western Europe. Poland, thanks to its strategic location as a logistics hub in the Eastern part of Europe is an ideal partner to link East and West.

In the area of clean technologies, we would be delighted to share highly innovative solutions for the treatment of industrial flue gas emissions, including a world patent for reducing CO2 emissions, and thus contributing to modernizing some of Poland’s strategic energy production facilities.

Despite being the smallest Member State of the European Space Agency, Luxembourg is playing a significant role in the space sector at different levels. With a fleet of more than 50 commercial satellites registered in Luxembourg, we occupy more space in space then on Earth. As co-chairman of the European Space Agency, Luxembourg has the opportunity to contribute to the shaping of the future of the Agency and its relationship with the European Union.

Mr President, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I warmly invite you to actively participate in today’s economic forum, with senior business representatives from both sides. I am confident that today marks an important milestone in our bilateral relations allowing us to highlight our economies, and strengthen our relations in a spirit of trust and mutual understanding. 

I thank you for your attention.

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