President Macron invites Indian PM Modi to Bastille Day parade as French guest of honor
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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi accepted the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron to attend France’s traditional military parade on July 14, Bastille Day, as the chief guest, the French president’s office said. announced on Friday.
“Indian troops to participate in parade alongside French troops” Joint statement It added that Modi’s visit coincided with the 25th anniversary of a “strategic partnership” between France and India, by France and India, published on the Elise website.
“This historic visit will enable joint initiatives to tackle the great challenges of our time, including climate change, biodiversity loss and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.”
Cher Narendra, heureux de t’accueillir à Paris comme invité d’honneur du défilé du 14 juillet!
Reuters, a Palestinian city at 14, New Jersey, Kirk Car Kay gave his name. pic.twitter.com/XTJi4MiE0E
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) May 5, 2023
according to memo by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of India, France and India.”It has entered a strategicpartnershipIn 1998 as a “main pillar”defense& Safetycooperation,SkycooperationandCivil nuclear cooperation.
India sees cooperation of defense Between New Delhi and Paris“cornerstone” ofofstrategic A partnership formed by the annual Ministerial Conference “Defense Dialogue” held since 2018.
India also purchased French Raphael fighters and Scopen submarines.
India and France also have a history of cooperation in space, including joint research programs and satellite launches. France supports India’s manned spaceflight program and supplies parts to India’s space program.
In June 2022, the GSAT-24 communications satellite built by ISRO for New Space India Ltd was launched from French Guiana. It will be used for Direct-To-Home communications for the next 15 years.
nuclear power cooperative
India and France also signed a civil nuclear cooperation agreement in 2008 during the visit of then-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to France. Subsequently, in December 2010, a cooperation agreement was signed between Indian and French power companies NPCIL and AREVA for the Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project. French President Nicolas Sarkozy during his visit to India.
India is also a member of the ITER project, which aims to build an experimental fusion reactor at Cadarache, France. The Ministry of Atomic Energy manages India’s involvement in his ITER project.
But Macron is probably most interested in strengthening ties with India, trying to draw New Delhi away from Russia, which was India’s formidable partner during the Cold War and is still seen as a friend. India has also refrained from criticizing Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and continues to engage in arms trade with Russia despite US sanctions.
France and India are already participating in joint military exercises that critics say are aimed at containing China.
French arms firm Thales probes corruption allegations in India
French prosecutor probes possible corruption linked to sale of Mirage 2000 fighter jets to India “Foreign Officials” and Money Laundering.
Sanjay Bhandari, an Indian broker living in the UK, claims he helped Thales secure a contract to refurbish a Mirage 2000 aircraft in India in exchange for €20 million in an offshore bank account.
In 2011, India signed a €1.4 billion modernization contract with Paris. This will be shared between Thales and French aviation giant Dassault for his fleet of 51 Mirage 2000s acquired in the 1980s.
Bhandari, who says he has only been paid part of the money, has filed a claim with the Nanterre Commercial Court for the remaining 11 million euros.
The court dismissed the claim on October 28 for lack of evidence, but Bhandari said an oral agreement was reached for payment and Thales won the contract.
Thales denied the allegations, telling French news agency AFP: “I have no contract with Mr. Bhandari.”
Since June 2021, Paris financial investigators have also investigated the status of 36 Rafale jets that France sold to India for €7.8 billion in September 2016.
(with agency)
https://www.rfi.fr/en/france/20230505-macron-invites-india-pm-modi-to-be-france-s-guest-of-honour-at-bastille-day-parade President Macron invites Indian PM Modi to Bastille Day parade as French guest of honor
