As Farmers Protest Edges Closer to Paris, Prez Macron Arrives in India on Republic Day President Macron had accepted the last minute invite for the Republic Day celebration, which has been read as a mark on the strength of the bilateral relations between the two nations.
3 min read
Photo: French President Emmanuel Macron with India's PM Modi in Jaipur, India.
NEW DELHI: As French President Emmanuel Macron is on two-day state visit to India to attend India’s Republic Day celebrations on Friday as the chief guest, while swelling farmers protest moving closer to Paris. French farmers blocked highways and dumped crates of imported produce on Thursday, demanding urgent action on low farmgate prices, green regulation and free-trade policies.
President Macron had accepted the last minute invite for the Republic Day celebration, which has been read as a mark on the strength of the bilateral relations between the two nations. Macron’s state visit marks France’s sixth participation, the highest of any other nation, as chief guest on India’s Republic Day.
But, the protest in his country is ratcheting up pressure for government measures to protect the influential agricultural sector from foreign competition, red tape, rising costs and poverty-levels of pay.
Fearing a spillover from farmer unrest in Germany, Poland and Romania, the French government has already postponed a draft farming law meant to help more people become farmers, saying it will beef up the measures and ease some regulations.
Ahead of European Parliament elections in June, President Emmanuel Macron is also wary that farmers are a growing constituency for the far right.
#BREAKING #France Ongoing farmers' protests in the French city of Bordeaux. pic.twitter.com/s5uKTWOpMk
— The National Independent (@NationalIndNews) January 25, 2024
However, amid protest the French President’s visit shows the “deep mutual trust” and “unwavering friendship” underpinning Indo-French ties. On Thursday in Jaipur, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron held talks to deepen bilateral ties, with discussions on advancing defence, security and business ties taking centre stage as the two countries narrow their focus on achieving new common goals during the next 25 years. These talks are also expected to chart the course for finalising new initiatives in a raft of key areas, including defence, space, collaboration in the vast Indo-Pacific region where China is seeking to expand its footprint, industrial cooperation, promoting cross-investments and responding to challenges such as the climate crisis, biodiversity loss and poverty eradication.
Macron’s visit comes at a time when India is looking at buying 26 Rafale M fighters from France for the navy’s first indigenous aircraft carrier, the 45,000-tonne INS Vikrant. The country is also planning to build three more Scorpene-class submarines with technology from France to enhance the Indian Navy’s undersea capabilities. The two deals are estimated to have a combined value of €9 billion to €10 billion.
Macron is accompanied by a ministerial delegation consisting of foreign affairs minister Stéphane Sejourné, defence minister Sébastien Lecornu, and culture minister Rachida Dati, a C-level business delegation of French majors, small and medium enterprises and midcaps, and other eminent personalities including European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Pesquet.
Earlier on Wednesday, the French embassy in Delhi said in a statement, “France and India have developed a trust-based cooperation aimed at strengthening strategic autonomy, illustrated by close cooperation in the defence sector, including advanced platforms and technologies. The two countries are also key partners in contributing to international peace and security, especially in the Indo-Pacific region, where we implement a joint strategy. They also have a long-standing cooperation of over 60 years on space spanning launchers, space exploration, crewed flights, climate monitoring satellites, and maritime surveillance.”
Macron’s visit also seeks to stress France’s commitment to creating more opportunities for Indian students, artists, investors and tourists.
“Special focus will be given to initiatives fostering student mobility, in support of President Macron’s announcement that France seeks to welcome 30,000 Indian students by 2030. Business ties and cross-investments will also be promoted during the visit, under the banner of France’s ‘Make it Iconic’ nation-branding campaign, which has targeted India as a priority country,” the statement said.
Macron will attend the 75th Republic Day celebrations as chief guest on Friday.
–Dr. M Shahid Siddiqui (PhD), Follow via X (Twitter) @shahidsiddiqui
