In France, as many as 199 events of various types, including many kinds of exhibitions, concerts, lectures, theatrical performances, and movie screenings were held throughout the year in a wide range of venues from major cities to small villages, as events of the EU-Japan Year of People-to-People Exchanges.

To give some examples, in Paris, events worth mentioning include the exhibition of ukiyo-e at the Maison de la culture du Japon à Paris and at the National Museum of Asian Art-Guimet, and concerts given by the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra which attracted a great number of attendees. In addition, many people took part in "Japanese Spring in Aix-en-Provence" and "Japanese Autumn in Bordeaux 2005," participated in so-called "Japan Month" where various events introducing Japan were held, and visited the Japanese stall in the Marseilles International Fair.

In Strasbourg, the "EUROSCOLA," in which high school students from Hiroshima and 25 EU Member States debate on the subject of world peace, as well as the exposition, "Traditional culture in daily life in Japan: origin of Europe-Japan exchange," were held at the European Parliament, which serves as one of the central organizations of the European Union (EU). In addition, "anime" artists from Japan were invited for the "Conference on Japanese Animation," which was held in Lyon, Grenoble, and Chambery. These events were a huge success, attracting large numbers of young people.

Many performances by professional artists were held as part of the Year of People-to-People Exchanges events including such performing arts as authentic traditional arts. In addition, as the name "People-to-People Exchanges" implies, citizens, including those from Japan-France Friendship Associations in various parts of France, participated in the EU-Japan Year by planning and conducting various events, which brought fruitful results of the EU-Japan Year.

France has traditionally been a place where cultural activities flourish, and where the level of interest and participation among citizens towards Japan-related cultural programs has been high; however, this Year of People-to-People Exchanges has surely boosted this to an even higher level. Building on this momentum, we expect that the people-to-people exchanges between Japan and France will continue to grow deeper, and are confident that this will be the case.