Italy and France and are linked by "deep ties", president Sergio Mattarella told students at the Italian high-school in Paris during a visit on Wednesday, underlining their future role in nurturing these ties.
Referencing the 'Naples in Paris' exhibition at the Louvre in Paris, Mattarella told pupils at the "Leonardo da Vinci" high-school: "I hope that in the next few days you will be able to visit it."
"It (the exhibition) will help you gain a better understanding of the deep ties that unite your country of origin and your host country," Mattarella underlined.
Mattarella told the students he was set to inaugurate the "splendid" exhibition - which highlights the ties bindings Italy and France - after his visit to their school on Wednesday.
"Culture is a country's best visiting card. It is by definition a heritage to be preserved and developed with care and application," said Mattarella.
"For this reason too, after greeting you, I will go to the Louvre to inaugurate the splendid exhibition 'Naples in Paris', designed precisely to highlight the many connections between Italy and France," Mattarella stated.
"You, in the future, will have the task of keeping these ties alive, deepening them, also through the friendships you will forge in these classrooms," Mattarella underlined.
Italy and France's futures lie in the hands of today's youth, he claimed.
"Committed daily effort is the best investment you can make for yourself and for the future of our countries," Mattarella concluded.
The 'Naples in Paris exhibition' runs from 7 June until 8 January and showcases some 60 major masterpieces from Naples' Capodimonte Museum, home to one of Europe's major picture galleries.
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