New Delhi: India and France will seek to further upgrade their defense, trade and technology ties as Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted French President Emmanuel Macron in Mumbai on Tuesday for a bilateral meeting. During his three-day visit to India, Macron will also attend the Artificial Intelligence Summit in Delhi on Thursday.Official sources said nearly a dozen agreements/MoUs in areas such as defence, trade, skills, health and supply chain are likely to be signed after the bilateral meeting. According to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, the two leaders will jointly launch the “Indo-France Year of Innovation” in Mumbai, which the two countries will celebrate until 2026. An event to commemorate the Indo-French Year of Innovation and Culture will be held at the Gate of India on Tuesday evening.The Indian government last week approved a proposal to procure 114 Rafale fighter jets from France under an inter-governmental framework. India and France will also hold their sixth annual defense dialogue in Bengaluru on Tuesday and are expected to renew their defense cooperation agreement for another decade. Discussions are also likely to focus on greater cooperation involving air and maritime assets, in line with an ambitious defense industry roadmap agreed to 2024.The two leaders will also discuss regional and global issues, including the Russia-Ukraine war, the situation in Gaza and the Indo-Pacific region, with India considering France an indispensable partner. With uncertainty looming over the Quad talks, the partnership with France, the Indian Ocean’s resident power, has become even more important for India.According to Indian authorities, the leaders of the two countries will discuss strengthening bilateral cooperation in a wide range of areas as contained in the “Horizon 2047 Roadmap” adopted three years ago to determine the direction for bilateral cooperation in the next 25 years. Macron attended an artificial intelligence summit in India, after co-hosting the same summit with Modi in France last year.The two leaders then highlighted their shared commitment to taking concrete action to ensure that the global AI industry can drive social, economic and environmental outcomes for the public good. They are also expected to review progress on the India-France AI roadmap, which is rooted in “philosophical convergence” in both sides’ focus on developing safe, open, reliable and trustworthy AI. The roadmap was launched during Modi’s visit to France last year.
