French President François Hollande to be Republic Day chief guest

New Delhi: French President François Hollande will be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations next year.

Though there has been no official announcement — either from India or France — it is understood that the invitation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the French President was extended last month and it has been accepted.

The acceptance was conveyed by French foreign minister Laurent Fabius during his day-long visit here on Friday. Significantly, the news about Mr Hollande’s January visit comes shortly after the deadly attacks in Paris last week that left at least 130 people dead and several others injured.

A state of emergency has also been declared in Paris for three months after the terror strikes. Mr Hollande had cancelled his trip to Turkey for the G20 summit earlier this week after the attacks in Paris.

This year’s R-Day parade saw US President Barack Obama as the chief guest, who was accompanied by First Lady Michelle Obama.

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