French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Narendra Modi are together creating stakes in Franco-Indian relations for their peoples so that future ties are cemented beyond government-to-government transactions that are already in abundance. Fertile new ground was broken during Macron’s state visit to New Delhi last month as chief guest for India’s 75th Republic Day. The two leaders had discussed the indispensability of this course when Modi was in Paris seven months ago.
Indian students who complete their Masters’ degree courses in French universities and previous alumni can now get five-year Schengen visas issued by France valid for almost all of Europe. Visas have been a huge headache for Indians wanting to travel to Europe and North America, especially after the Covid pandemic created massive backlogs in applications. The Indian alumni of French institutions will no longer have to put up with interminable waiting periods of over a year for visa appointments and short-stay visas when they are finally issued. No other European Union country has taken such a liberal step—it will endear thousands of Indians to France. Similarly, Indian professionals seeking work in France will benefit from tweaks to a bilateral Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement.
As tourism from France to India goes through a post-pandemic revival, French citizens from distant places will no longer have to travel to Paris for consular work. A big gap in relations hitherto has been the absence of any Indian presence in mainland France other than its embassy in Paris. Modi and Macron have resolved to set up the first Indian consulate general in mainland France. It will soon be operational in Marseille, the second most populous city in that country. Simultaneously, France will open a Bureau de France in Hyderabad, the sixth French diplomatic outpost in India that will issue visas for the people of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
As a consequence of another populist decision, Indians visiting Paris can henceforth make payments through the Unified Payment Interface (UPI), India’s instant payment system. The UPI facility has been operationalised at the Eiffel Tower to start with. It will soon extend to museums in Paris, hotels all over France and facilities such as restaurants.
Amid the pageantry and pomp of the Republic Day parade, a symbolic but significant event escaped popular attention. The Rafale jets and a multi-role tanker transport aircraft of the French Air and Space Force, which took part in the ceremonial parade, did not fly into India from France. They came from the Al Dhafra air base in the United Arab Emirates. Three days before the Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi, these military planes had taken part in a trilateral exercise called ‘Desert Knight’ at Al Dhafra along with Indian and UAE air forces.
Trilateralism is now the buzzword in Indian foreign policy and France is India’s partner of choice in this relatively new enterprise. Exercise Desert Knight grew out of a trilateral “focal points meeting” of senior officials among India, France and the UAE in 2022. What began as an exchange of perspectives on maritime security, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, blue economy, regional connectivity, energy and food security has evolved in less than two years into a robust diplomatic initiative.
The UAE is not the only country with which India and France are jointly seeking trilateral pooling of resources for common good. A similar effort had been started by these two countries with Australia. But it hit roadblocks after Canberra cancelled a $50-billion deal with Paris for acquiring nuclear-powered submarines. However, within 10 days of Australia and France settling their dispute over the deal, India, France and Australia sat down for a “focal points meeting” similar to the one with UAE. After Modi was invited last year to be a guest of honour at the Bastille Day parade and Macron’s return visit for a similar honour, it is not an exaggeration to use the cliché—“the sky is the limit” in India-France relations. The personal chemistry between Macron and Modi is part of the reason for this bilateral relationship to grow into one of India’s most important foreign policy priorities. Modi was the first foreign leader to call on Macron after he was first elected president in 2017. In the old days, this honour would have gone to a European leader.
Today, India trusts France more than any other country in its external interactions. This trust has been steadily built since 1998, when France was one of very few countries which showed a generous understanding of the imperatives of India’s twin nuclear tests. India’s first strategic partnership was with France 26 years ago.
The adage that a friend in need is a friend indeed was borne out in the run-up to this Republic Day. India approached France only in the third week of December, with the invitation to be the chief guest after US President Joe Biden declined. For almost half a year, Biden dilly-dallied on India’s invitation. A similar thing has happened before, but not with the president of one of the P-5, or the permanent members of the UN Security Council, as the substitute.
In the last 25 years, India’s relations with France have been problem-free. Where do they go from here? The two sides have unveiled a roadmap for a bilateral defence-industrial partnership. An agreement signed between Tata Advanced Systems and Airbus to set up an assembly plant in India for H125 helicopters is the first such involving India’s private sector. Two agreements, one between India’s Ministry of Defence and the French Ministry of the Armed Forces, and another between New Space India and Arianespace have opened new frontiers for space defence. They will lead to joint launches of military satellites. Other agreements span sectors such as science and technology, health, public administration and urban development.
New ground has also been broken in Francophone Africa. France and India are jointly setting up a solar academy in Senegal with assistance from the International Solar Alliance. With the exception of the US, it is only with France that India’s bilateral agenda is so packed.