French President Macron to arrive in India on maiden visit
French President Emmanuel Macron will arrive in India on March 9 on a four-day maiden visit, during which he would discuss bilateral economic, political and strategic ties, the MEA said today. A framework agreement on Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project is expected to be signed between the two sides during the visit. PM Modi will hold delegation-level talks with the French President on March 10.
India-France relations history
The last French Presidential visit to India was in Jan'16, when Hollande was the chief-guest at the Republic Day celebrations. Modi last visited France in Jun'17, immediately after Macron was elected as the President. The India-France strategic partnership, established in 1998, is one of the most important and comprehensive bilateral engagements. It is marked by intense and frequent high-level exchanges and deep political understandings.
Aim of the visit of President Macron
"The visit of President Macron is aimed at strengthening the economic, political, and strategic dimension of our bilateral engagement," MEA statement said. The India-France CEO's Forum will also take place during Macron's visit, it said. The visit is aimed at forging not only strong manufacturing and technology partnerships but also greater people-to-people contacts, especially through greater exchanges of students and researchers, it added.
France is the ninth largest foreign investor in India
France is the ninth largest foreign investor in India, with a cumulative investment of $6.09bn from April 2000 to October 2017. Close to 1,000 French companies operate in India and about 120 Indian firms have invested in excess of €1bn in France.
