India, France Forge Special Strategic Ties For ‘Stability’
In a post on X, the Governor of Maharashtra said, "Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi arrived in Maharashtra Lok Bhavan Mumbai for his meeting with the President of the French Republic Emmanuel Macron. The Governor of Maharashtra and Gujarat Acharya Devvrat welcomed the Prime Minister at Lok Bhavan, Mumbai."Both leaders also shared a hug upon meeting
New Delhi: After talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in Mumbai on Tuesday evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that India and France have now elevated ties to the level of a “special global strategic partnership” that “knows no boundaries” and stretches from the “deep oceans to the tallest mountains”. Mr Modi hailed the bilateral ties as a “force for global stability" that will “open a new chapter” in times of global uncertainty.
After wide-ranging talks between Modi and Macron, India and France agreed on 21 outcomes, including pacts and announcements in sectors including defence, economy, health, digital, critical minerals and skilling. This includes a “joint venture between BEL and (French company) Safran to produce Hammer missiles in India”. The two sides are also inching towards the acquisition of another 114 Rafale fighter aircraft, the bulk of which are to be manufactured in India.
The Prime Minister and the French President jointly inaugurated the final assembly production line of the Tata-Airbus H-125 light multi-role helicopters at Vemagal in Karnataka that have both civil and military variants in virtual mode. As Modi put it, these helicopters have the capability of flying to the heights of Mount Everest and will also be exported.
The Prime Minister referred to this year as the “turning point” in ties between India and Europe and referred to the India-Europe free trade agreement (FTA) announced by both sides just last month. He referred to France as one of India’s oldest strategic partners.
The 21 outcomes agreed upon between India and France include the “establishment of an annual foreign ministers dialogue for regularly reviewing implementation of the elevated partnership and Horizon 2047 Roadmap, renewal of the agreement between the Government of India and the French Republic on defence cooperation, and launch of the India-France Year of Innovation”.
The agreed outcomes also include the “reciprocal deployment of officers at Indian Army and French Land Forces establishments, joint declaration of intent for cooperation in critical minerals and metals, joint declaration of intent on establishing an Indo-French centre for digital sciences and technology, launch of the Indo-French centre for AI in health at AIIMS New Delhi, agreement for the establishment of an Indo-French centre for metabolic health sciences, letter of intent to establish a national centre of excellence for skilling in aeronautics" and renewal of an MoU on renewable energy cooperation.
In his media remarks, Modi said the two nations have inked a pact for avoidance of double taxation that will benefit the citizens of both countries and give a boost to trade and mobility.
The Prime Minister also lauded the celebration of the India-France Year of Innovation and pointed to cooperation in defence, clean energy, space and emerging technologies that will connect investors, students and researchers. He also announced the opening of a Swami Vivekananda cultural centre in France. He vowed that the two nations will cooperate to “uproot terrorism”.
On global issues, Modi pointed out how India will always support peace efforts from the Russia-Ukraine conflict to the Middle East to the Indo-Pacific.
The French President, in his media remarks, said bilateral ties have “trust, openness and ambition”. He mentioned bilateral cooperation on the Rafale fighter aircraft and submarines as well as fifth-generation fighter jet engines and emphasised aspects such as co-production.
Macron also offered French assistance to India in the field of high-speed rail networks. Referring to the AI Impact Summit that he will be attending later this week, the French President emphasised that the “algorithms should be transparent” so that they benefit all in the world".
