INDIA & France Resolve To Strengthen Relations
INDIA and France inked 14 agreements and Memorandum of Understandings in New Delhi on Saturday in the presence Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron. Macron arrived here on a 4-day visit to India on Friday evening. He was given a ceremonial welcome on Saturday morning. Addressing the joint statement, Modi recalled that even though India-France strategic partnership is just 20 years old, the cultural and spiritual partnership between the two nations is ages old. Liberty, equality and fraternity not only echo in France, but are also deeply embedded in India’s Constitution.PM Modi welcomed investments from France in the defence sector under ‘Make in India’. India and France also signed an agreement on protection of classified information.”India and France have robust cooperation in fields of defence and security. In the defence sector, we welcome investments from France under ‘Make in India’,” Modi said. Macron said that France wants India as its first strategic partner in Asia and it wants to be India’s first strategic partner in Europe and even the western world. Macron added that India and France have decided to work together to deal with threats of terrorism and radicalisation. PM Modi held talks with Macron had earlier discussed as to how explore ways to deepen bilateral cooperation in the fields of defence, security, trade and investment. The visit of the French President is aimed at strengthening the bilateral economic, political and strategic dimension of our engagement, India’s Ministry for External Affairs said. French President Macron is in India for a four-day visit to deepen ties between the two nations. PM Modi had driven to the Delhi airport to welcome the French President and the First Lady .PM met President Macron for India-France bilateral talks at the Hyderabad House on Saturday morning. President Macron will “spend a lot of time with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.” The two leaders have “formed a close relationship” during President Macron’s first nine months in power. President Macron is accompanied by his wife Brigitte Marie-Claude Macron, businessmen and top officials. President Macron has a busy schedule in India. I want to double the number of Indian students coming to France and also want to increase the number of French students going to India said Macron. On the problems surrounding the world today, Macron said “Most of the issues we have today, on climate, on terrorism are because of the short-term vision of most of the leaders. They were greedy. “Commenting on artificial intelligence, the French President compares the key players in this field, US and China. In the United States, artificial intelligence is totally driven by private playmakers such as Google and Amazon. Whereas, in China, it’s totally state driven, he added. President Macron and his wife laid a wreath at the memorial of Mahatma Gandhi and paid tribute to the father of the nation at Rajghat. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj met French President Macron at the Alliance Francaise in New Delhi. Macron attended a CEOs forum where he had interaction with industry heads and top CEOs. India and France look to boost economic and business ties over the coming decades. President Macron on Monday will visit Varanasi where Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Macron will take a special cruise on the Ganga and will have a meeting over lunch. The two leaders will have a one-on-one discussion. President Macron and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh where they will inaugurate a 100 MW solar power plant, the largest in the northern State.
