By PHILIP PANGALOS And STELIOS BOURAS
ATHENS—French President François Hollande sent a message of support to Greece during a low-key one-day visit to Athens on Tuesday, welcoming the Greek government’s reform efforts and reaffirming the country’s place in the euro zone.
The political b
acking provides support to Greece’s conservative-dominated coalition government, which is facing rising social tensions after years of austerity that are aimed at keeping Greece in the common currency, but have led to nearly continuous strikes over wage cuts and tax increases.
On his first official trip to Athens, Mr. Hollande met with Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and said that Greece’s austerity efforts haven’t been in vain, despite pushing the economy into a sixth straight year of recession and pushing unemployment to 27%—the highest jobless rate in Europe.
“I came to G
reece to express to the Greek people the support of France, and the trust that we want to show in the government’s steps in recent months. We should give Greece every possibility and opportunity to achieve its goals,” Mr. Hollande said.
His visit to Athens contrasts with a stopover a few months earlier by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, when Greece’s future in the euro zone seemed uncertain and tens of thousands of protesters clogged the streets of the Greek capital to voice their opposition to the German-backed austerity measures.
Since then, Europe has handed out billions of euros in new cash to Greece, shares on the Athens stock exchange have rallied, and foreign investors are taking a closer look at the country.
The French leader is viewed by the Greek public as sympathetic to the country’s plight, and France has generally been more supportive of maintaining Greece’s place in the euro zone. By contrast, Ms. Merkel and her government have been sharply critical of the Greek profligacy that allowed the country’s public debt and deficits to spiral out of control.
“The visit by President Hollande is a very welcome development as it indicates that one of the two major centers of economic and political power in Europe—the other is Germany—is well-disposed towards very stringent efforts to prevent Greece from leaving the euro zone,” said Theodore Couloumbis, professor emeritus at the University of Athens.
The French president’s visit comes on the eve of a nationwide general strike set for Wednesday, a 24-hour walkout that is expected to bring Greece to a halt. But no public protests marred Mr. Hollande’s visit.
The two leaders discussed Greece’s privatization plans and investment opportunities for French companies in the Greek economy, particularly in energy, construction, transportation and defense.
The two leaders also presided over a signing ceremony for a bilateral agreement aimed at boosting the number of French tourists heading to Greece.
French civil servants have been advising Athens on overhaul efforts and on preparing a national land registry.
“I have come here to mobilize French companies to make investments in Greece,” said Mr. Hollande, who was accompanied on his visit by a group of businesspeople from France. “We have to strengthen their presence.”
Mr. Hollande spoke to a joint gathering of French and Greek business leaders late Tuesday after meeting with the heads of the Greek government’s two junior coalition leaders.
Mr. Hollande’s call to French companies comes after three flagship French enterprises pulled out of Greece last year as the risk of a Greek euro exit loomed.
Banking giants Crédit Agricole SA ACA.FR +0.99% and Société Générale SA GLE.FR +2.16% have recently sold off their Greek subsidiaries, while retail conglomerate Carrefour SA CA.FR +4.58% withdrew from its Greek joint-venture operations last year.
Write to Philip Pangalos at philip.pangalos@dowjones.com and Stelios Bouras at stelios.bouras@dowjones.com