BENGALURU: With a new President and a government in France, bilateral relations between India and France will see new dynamics, said Alexandre Ziegler, Ambassador of France to India. Emmanuel Macron was elected as the President of France last week and a new government is likely to be in office by Tuesday.
“Bilateral relations have always been good and it will be even better,” Ziegler said when asked about the election of the new president. He was in Bengaluru on Monday to inaugurate the new visa facilitation service centre and Atout France tourism kiosk.
Ziegier said India and France are working together on many issues, including cooperation in dealing with terrorism. “Terrorism is a global challenge and it has to be dealt with the spirit of cooperation. That is what we are doing with India,” he said.
The Atout France tourism kiosk that was inaugurated at the newly relocated France Visa Facilitation Service Centre at Langford Town in Bengaluru will disseminate information about France’s wide-ranging tourism opportunities. It will also enable travellers to book tickets and passes in advance for concerts, museums and monuments in France while applying for a visa.
Similar centres will come up soon in Mumbai and New Delhi. Dedicated staff trained by Atout France will man the kiosks to guide travellers.
According to the Ambassador, France is the preferred tourism and business destination globally, receiving around 83 million tourists in 2016. It is a favourite outbound destination in India - in 2015 alone, a record 5 lakh Indian travellers visited France.