PM Modi, French Prez agree on blueprint to further expand strategic bilateral ties
Discuss various issues ranging from Ukraine to Indo-Pacific and defence & bilateral trade
PARIS: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron held extensive discussions on a range of bilateral and pressing global issues, including the raging conflict in Ukraine, the situation in the Indo-Pacific and terrorism, as the two top leaders agreed on a blueprint to work together in making the India-France strategic partnership a force for global good.
Modi, who arrived here on a brief working visit from Denmark on the final leg of his three-nation European tour, held one-on-one and delegation-level talks with Macron at the Elysee Palace on Wednesday night in their first meeting after the French leader was recently re-elected in the presidential election.
Modi and Macron held discussions on the entire range of bilateral issues, including cooperation in defence, space, blue economy, civil nuclear and people-to-people ties, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a press release.
“Delighted, as always, to meet my friend President @ EmmanuelMacron. We talked at length about bilateral as well as global issues. India and France are proud developmental partners with our partnership spread across different sectors,” Modi tweeted in English and French languages along with a photograph of him and Macron hugging each other.
The two leaders also took stock of the regional and global security outlook and discussed ways to work together in making the India-France Strategic Partnership a force for global good. The Prime Minister’s visit to France displayed the strong friendship and goodwill not only between the two countries but also between the two leaders, the release said.
Tweeting a photograph of his meeting with Modi, Macron said: “Tonight, with @NarendraModi, we discussed the different ongoing international crises as well as our strategic partnership. We also talked about food security issues and the FARM initiative, in which India will play a key role.”
Prime Minister Modi invited President Macron to visit India at the earliest opportunity, the MEA release said.
Prime Minister Modi invited President Macron to visit
India at the earliest opportunity, the MEA release said
India and France are strong strategic partners and the two leaders are also good friends, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra told reporters here.
President Macron's renewed mandate and the conversations between Prime Minister Modi and the French President allow the two countries to build on existing strengths and success of India-France strategic partnership and also jot out a blueprint for its next phase, he said.
“The two leaders held wide-ranging discussions on all the key areas of bilateral engagement, including in defence, space, civil nuclear cooperation and people-to-people linkages. They also discussed regional and global issues including developments in Europe and in the Indo-Pacific. India and France see each other as key partners in the Indo-Pacific,” Kwatra said.
According to a joint press statement issued after the meeting, India and France — in a post-pandemic world, facing global geopolitical challenges — reaffirmed their commitment to prepare for the future together by further deepening their cooperation, expanding it in new domains to meet emerging challenges and broadening their international partnership. Besides bilateral cooperation, India and France will continue
to develop new partnerships in various formats with like-minded countries in the region and within regional organisations, it said.