With the experience gained hosting the Euro 2012 football championships with Ukraine, Poland is trying to win business contracts, including for construction, in Russia, which is hosting the 2018 World Cup.
Polish press agency, PAP, reports that representatives from 11 cities hosting the 2018 tournament visited Poland on a fact-finding mission, and that a conference is scheduled for March in Moscow to promote Polish companies.
"We showed them examples from Warsaw, Gdansk and Wroclaw [where Euro 2012 matches were held], and we held seminars on how Poland managed the project from start to finish in June 2012," said Poland’s deputy foreign minister, Beata Stelmach.
Starting in February, the Foreign Ministry plans to organise trips to Russia targeting World Cup host cities.
"Together with the ministries of Economy, Transport, Construction and Maritime, we will be holding political and business talks, and promoting Polish companies in Russia," Stelmach said.
The 11 Russian cities hosting the matches will be Moscow, Sochi, Saint Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Samara, Saransk, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don and Ekaterinburg.
