NEW DELHI: EAM S Jaishankar on Tuesday held discussions with his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian where the two leaders talked about cooperation in trade and defence as well as bilateral, regional and global issues.
“A comfortable, substantive and productive discussion with FM @JY_LeDrian. India and France will advance their shared post-COVID agenda through close collaboration,” Jaishankar tweeted after the meeting. La Drian arrived in India on Monday on a four-day visit.
He was to call on PM Narendra Modi later on Tuesday. The visit is aimed at boosting cooperation between India and France, including in the Indo-Pacific region. The visit comes amid French media reports suggesting corruption in the Rafale deal with India. India had signed a pact with France in September 2016 for procurement of 36 Rafale jets at a cost of around Rs 58,000 crore. Dassault Aviation has delivered 14 aircraft to the IAF so far.
“Excellent meeting b/w @JY_LeDrian @francediplo_EN & @DrSJaishankar @MEAIndia. The ministers discussed all aspects of the bilateral strategic partnership, regional & global challenges and cooperation at the #UNSC,” French ambassador to India Emmanuel Lenain tweeted.