Paris – During a ceremony attended by Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir and the President of the institute in Paris, Jack Langhe, the Arab World Institute in Paris unveiled a new memorial plaque featuring a message to greet Saudi Arabia for its generous financial contribution allocated for its renovation. The event was also attended by many guests including professors from the institute and the Saudi Ambassador to Paris.

In his keynote addressed on the sidelines of the event, Langh greeted the Kingdom, which provided a major contribution to renovate the building, especially its exterior façade inspired by the old Arabic architecture. Lang said that former Saudi King Khalid bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud initiated the idea of establishing this one-of-its-kind institute in the seventies. The institute has been a hub for cultural dialogue and has played a major role in spreading the Arabic language across France and Europe, the president stated.

Langhe later revealed that the Kingdom allocated USD5 million for the institute, which has sought to collect USD13 million for the required renewal works – Qatar also allocated USD2 million.

During a brief speech he addressed during the event, the Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir stressed the Kingdom’s eagerness on motivating dialogue among different people and applauded the institute’s continuous role as symbol of cooperation and communication among nations.

Jubeir noted that this cultural foundation was launched 27 years ago and that the protection of such foundation is a duty. He considered that Saudi Arabia has contributed in supporting an institution that work on spreading the Arab civilization among western countries and serve in enhancing communication and cohabitation among different cultures and people.