It is official! Emmanuel Macron to be Chief Guest for 75th Republic Day celebrations

It is official! Emmanuel Macron to be Chief Guest for 75th Republic Day celebrations

At the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Emmanuel Macron, President of France, will be visiting India as the Chief Guest for the 75th Republic Day celebrations. Announcement of Macron’s state visit comes amidst the ongoing Israel-Palestine war, Russia-Ukraine conflict.

MEA Announces

“This year, we are celebrating the 25th anniversary of the India-France Strategic Partnership. The Prime Minister was the Guest of Honour at the Bastille Day Parade held on 14 July 2023 in Paris. President Macron visited India for the G-20 Summit on 8-9 September 2023,” said MEA’s official statement.

During the forthcoming state visit of the French President Macron, boosting defence ties is expected to be a key focus of the talks between the two leaders. The groundwork was laid during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit with the announcement of New Delhi ‘s procurement of 26 Naval variant of Rafale jets from France and also a big -ticket deal to jointly develop an aircraft engine in India.

It has been reported previously that Modi was the guest of honour at the annual Bastille Day Parade and held talks with Macron to take forward cooperation in a range of key areas including defence, space, trade and investment.

The focus is expected to be more towards deepening engagement towards “co-production, co-development and co-design” of military hardware and to also link it to India’s priorities for Atmanirbhar `self-reliance’ in the defence sector is expected to be part of the discussions.

Nuclear Power Reactors

Both sides are already engaged in discussions in an effort to resolve all issues including those relating civil nuclear liability, cost and techno commercial matters.

The forthcoming visit is expected to be rich in substance and would also set a new benchmark in the strategic partnership between the two countries in years ahead.

Agenda of Talks

When the two leaders meet for bilateral talks, they will review the progress made in various sectors under key pillars of the strategic partnership. These key pillars include space, climate change, counter-terrorism, security, civil nuclear technology, cyber security, and integration of supply chains of India and France.

And will also provide the two leaders an opportunity to chart the course of the partnership for the future across various sectors including education, economic cooperation, strategic, cultural, and scientific.

Defence Cooperation

Due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and Israel-Palestine war, India is keen on deepening relations with France.

France has already sent details and price for 26 Rafale Marine Fighter jets that the Indian Navy is expected to get and also has sent in bids for the three `Scorpene’ class submarines under Project 75. Under Project 75, six Scorpene submarines have already been made in India – under joint collaboration between MDL and Naval Group.

The defence ministry is in talks with French defence major Safran for joint development of a fighter jet engine in India to power the country’s next generation aircraft including the futuristic Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).

India-France Space Cooperation

The space economy and deepening cooperation in the sector will also be the focus of talks as space economy emerges as a promising domain for collaboration, aligning with the evolving landscape of the global space sector.

25thAnniversary of the strategic partnership between India and France

In the year 2023 both countries are celebrating the 25th anniversary of the strategic partnership. And the two leaders are keen on expanding relations between the two countries.