2x trade in 5 years, nuclear cooperation: Modi-Macron Nice meet | India News
India and France looked to further expanded their bilateral ties in a range of areas including defence, civil nuclear cooperation, trade and technology as President Emmanuel Macron hosted PM Narendra Modi for bilateral talks. Adoption of an innovation roadmap to deepen cooperation in critical and emerging technology, launch of an economic security dialogue, another working group for AI governance and a declaration to double bilateral trade in the next 5 years were among the 13 outcomes announced after the meeting. Both sides also looked to ramp up defence cooperation, consistent with India’s Make in India initiative. The leaders focused on civil nuclear cooperation too, one of the central pillars of the partnership, taking note of India’s SHANTI Act that is expected to open up opportunities, including on small and advanced modular reactors. “The field is open for French nuclear companies to start looking at direct participation in the Indian nuclear sector or do so in participation with Indian private sector companies, whether in conventional nuclear power reactors or in the more advanced small modular reactors,” said foreign secretary Vikram Misri, after the Modi-Macron meeting. On defence cooperation, Modi is said to have underlined the significance of co-development, co-design, co-production and co-manufacturing. “The underlying theme was that whichever defense platform we talk about…local manufacturing should be there and our cooperation should be designed while keeping this in mind,” said Misri. French ambassador Thierry Mathou had told TOI ahead of Modi’s visit to France that the proposed deal for procurement of 114 Rafale figter jets by India will align with Make in India. The leaders discussed the situation in both West Asia and Ukraine, although details of the talks were not shared. France would like India to join the defensive coalition it is working on along with the UK to ensure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz after the end of the conflict. India has so far not publicly stated its position, although it did join meetings hosted by France and UK on the issue. The leaders also stressed the importance of enhancing people-to-people ties, with Modi thanking Macron for the “swift operationalisation” of visa-free transit for Indian nationals at French airports. “They further discussed ways to enhance the mobility of talent and students between the 2 countries and expanding mutual recognition of educational qualifications,” said an Indian readout, adding that Modi invited French universities to open campuses in India under the New Education Policy. According to the readout, both leaders appreciated the continued expansion of UPI in France, as well as the signing of 19 agreements among institutions in the innovation ecosystems of both countries. “Both leaders reiterated the importance of the India-France Special Global Strategic Partnership in creating further opportunities for the peoples of the two countries and advancing international peace, stability and prosperity,” said the statement, adding that Modi thanked Macron for engaging India in substantive discussions leading up to the G7 summit. Later in the evening, Modi left for Slovakia but will return to France on Tuesday to attend the G7 summit.
