Six months into his term as French ambassador to Bulgaria, Etienne de Poncins has already proved his commitment to Bulgaria.

Little more than a month after he arrived, July 21, to be exact, word came of a “governmental airplane arriving from Tripoli” – he and the embassy staff were to be on-call for whatever the outcome might be. On July 24, De Poncins was one of the first to welcome the five Bulgarian nurses and Palestinian doctor to Bulgaria after an eight-year detainment.

Early autumn 2007, he hosted France’s new president Nicolas Sarkozy for a whirlwind one-day official visit, which included a meeting with the freed medics and a lecture for students at Sofia University.

And then, because De Poncins recognises the value of maintaining contact and connection with the country as a whole, he implemented the publication of a free monthly newsletter – Le Courrier de Sofia – that fills subscribers in on his activities and what the embassy is doing for Bulgaria.

The self-described “specialist in European affairs” came to Sofia from more than two years in the position of director of the cabinet of the French minister delegate for European affairs, before which he was the spokesman and media officer at France’s Permanent Representation to the European Union, and was a member of the Secretariat of the European Convention, where he “actively participated” in the creation of the European Constitution alongside former French president Valery Giscard d’Estaing.

The European Constitution became so much a part of him that he ended up writing three books on the subject – Vers une Constitution europeenne (Towards a European Constitution), Explique-moi la Constitution europeenne (Explain to Me the European Constitution, an illustrated edition for young and old) and La Constitution europeenne en vingt cinq cles (The European Constitution in Twenty-Five Points).

Before his time at the Secretariat, he was first secretary at the French embassy in Warsaw and a counsellor at France’s Permanent Representation to the European Union in Brussels, among other positions.

Unlike the majority of French people – who voted “non” to the constitution in May 2005 – De Poncins is in favour, and in favour of a more unified Europe.

“It is very moving to see the countries of the European Union work together. I’m a diplomat; I find that working right where it was all happening (Brussels) was the most interesting, because there was a family aspect to it. We’re all in the same European family, so can become more personal. Obviously, it’s challenging, because there are always impediments, successes, crises,” he said to The Sofia Echo, describing how he found it “beautiful” to see these countries working together for 50 years.

Of course, beautiful does not mean that every moment has been pretty. De Poncins said that in working to enlarge the EU, from a myopic viewpoint, it is easy to become frustrated, because it appears that wrangles and bickerings are constantly occurring – but if one takes a step back, one sees that what is being done is “truly extraordinary”, like the French-German reconciliation following World War 2, for example. “When one looks at the past, one sees how amazing this is – these were terrible wars, and they succeeded in becoming the best of friends,” he said.

This reconciliation also resulted in the so-called manuel d’histoire franco-allemand (officially titled Histoire/Geschichte), a French-German history text on which both sides – including De Poncins – collaborated and approved.

Another benefit of the European Union is how it has instilled democratic society into countries like Spain and Portugal, and is now working to improve similar situations in the new member states, all of them former communist countries.

“In simply doing one’s job, some very worthwhile things come about,” he said.

Quoting the dictum “united in diversity”, De Poncins said that there should be no fear about loss of a country’s individual culture as a result of adhesion to the EU. “Experience has proved wrong those who thought that the EU was going to destroy national cultures; this is clearly seen. All over, regional cultures have never been as rich or as protected as they are now with the European Union. It’s seen in Catalonia, in the different regions in Spain... And there is no reason that Bulgaria should not follow the same path that the other countries have followed.”

Now that it is an EU member, Bulgaria will benefit from what the union can to do encourage its development as a country, not to mention the encouragement and sense of belonging that provides solidarity. And the assistance of an incoming seven billion euro.

“In my opinion, the country is going to be transformed in 10 years, max. The Bulgaria that we know in 10 years will be completely different from the one we know today,” he said, citing the construction of better roads, renovation of the rail system, and water purification and heating systems in the more remote towns and villages as changes to be expected.

“The transformation of the country is going to speak of its membership in the EU – like Portugal was transformed, like Greece, like Ireland. There is no reason that this should not happen in Bulgaria. And so I am confident in the future,” he said. “Where there is protection of Bulgaria’s diversity and identity, there is nothing in particular to fear; the other countries that have entered the union provide sufficient examples – Portugal has remained Portuguese, Ireland has a magnificent Irish identity... Each brings a particular richness.”

In his time in Brussels, he saw that Bulgaria ws held in good opinion by the other members, not posing any problem to how the union functioned – but that there remains work to be done. Namely, the fight against corruption, the fight against organised crime and reform of the justice system.

Comparing Bulgaria with his experience in Western Europe, he said that it would be difficult for people from the West to put themselves in the place of people from Central Europe who are exiting 50 years of communism. This, in turn, could possibly pose a challenge to integration on a mental level for both sides. “For 50 years, Bulgaria was separated from the rest of Europe and from the normal paths of a democratic Europe – for 50 years, we lived different histories: you had communism, we had the after-war democracy. But that does not inhibit us from drawing together and being in the same European family,” De Poncins said.

The communist history of the new member states shows how fragile is democracy, he said, that it can be necessary to “reconquer and consolidate” it. “What, in France, or in other countries where there has been democracy, seems normal and easily acquired, here (in Bulgaria), or in Poland or in Romania, needs to be defended. Less than 20 years ago, this would not have been very possible.”

One of De Poncins goals while here as ambassador is to increase French-Bulgarian economic connections. While he is happy that there have been good relations so far, he sees even more room for potential when it comes to French investment in the Bulgarian market. Particularly in the field of energy. And particularly nuclear energy, at that.
Asked what he thinks about renewable or alternative sources of energy, he said that such is all nice and good, that such alternatives should be sought out, but “if one really wants to fight against climate change, wind is not sufficient – it’s not always windy; solar energy is not sufficient – it’s not always sunny. And it is expensive to develop”.

The French political stance is as follows: “If we want to take serious action against global warming, nuclear energy is obligatory. There is no other solution.”

If he were not a diplomat, he’d be a professor of history. (De Poncins has an undergraduate degree in history, which was followed by a diploma from the Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris, and then a degree from the Ecole Nationale d’Aministration, graduating rank Jean Monnet.)

But such a job would be too passive – he likes to be where the action is, to make history instead of simply talking about it.

His favourite person from French history is General Charles de Gaulle – and not only because his hometown is in proximity to the De Gaulle family house in Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises (52). “I admire the courage of this man,” De Poncins said.

And though a fan of history, he is not one to look back to the past, he said, describing himself as being in the present. Accordingly, there is nothing really about France that he misses. If that were the case, “I should not be in this profession!” De Poncins, who is married with three children, said.

He is the face of France to Bulgaria; it is he that maintains connections with the Bulgarian Government, while presenting France to Bulgarians, along with overseeing the instigation of economic relations, inviting industry, and working with Bulgarian authorities on topics like Kosovo and the European Treaty. In what he does, De Poncins proves that being an ambassador truly is constant work, not just receptions and pretty portraits.

To receive Le Courrier de Sofia, send an e-mail with the word “abonnement” in the subject line to [courrierdesofia@ambafrance-bg.org].