Overview

• The Baden-Württemberg leader set off Monday for the Grand Est region around Strasbourg before continuing to the canton of Zurich over three days.
• Meetings are planned at companies and research centers to deepen collaboration in the defense industry, aerospace, artificial intelligence and quantum research.
• The itinerary includes a visit to the Hartmannswillerkopf memorial near Mulhouse to honor First World War victims.
• The state chancellery frames this as his last proper foreign delegation, while a brief post‑election farewell trip after the March 8 Landtag vote remains possible without concrete plans.
• Kretschmann, 77, travels with a mixed delegation of ministers, experts, business and university representatives and journalists, taking a bus to Strasbourg rather than federal flight resources.