Brussels, 24/06/2009 (Agence Europe) - The mayors and bourgmestres of three French-speaking European cities, accompanied by Secretary General of Francophonie Abdou Diouf, announced on Thursday 18 June that a joint Masters in European Studies was being set up in Strasbourg, Brussels and Luxembourg. The Masters, to be taught in French, will be aimed principally at civil servants from the EU central and eastern European member states. The university course will complement the work of the Organisation international de la Francophonie, which provides French language training to some 12,000 civil servants, diplomats, lawyers, journalists and others annually, Diouf said. The topics to be covered in the new Masters degree course will reflect the areas of expertise of each of the three universities involved (Université libre de Bruxelles, Université de Strasbourg and Université de Luxembourg) which will work very closely together. (I.L./transl.rt)