India and France held the 36th Strategic Dialogue in New Delhi yesterday. The Indian delegation was led by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, while the French delegation was led by French President Emmanuel Macron’s diplomatic advisor Emmanuel Bonne.
The 36th edition of the annual strategic dialogue saw discussions on wide-ranging issues, including counterterrorism, cyber security and defence cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, said MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.
“At the 36th Strategic Dialogue, they agreed to deepen our strategic partnership in all areas: from defence to counter-terrorism, civilian nuclear energy, space and cybersecurity,’’ tweeted Ambassador of France in India Emmanuel Lenain.
Bonne also called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and met with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, and G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant. He assured Doval full support for India’s G20 presidency and conveyed Macron’s message that Indo-French cooperation would be the key to tackling global challenges in 2023. “Glad to meet Bonne. Useful exchange of views on current issues of mutual interest,’’ tweeted Jaishankar.
This meeting is a prelude of a possible visit by French President Emmanuel Macron in March and discussed a number of regional and global issues including the security situation pertaining to Afghanistan and the conflict in Ukraine.
The French media reported that Macron’s visit will see the two sides signing the contract for naval version of the Rafale fighter jets in a year India and France will celebrate the 25th anniversary of their strategic partnership. It said the Indian Navy has eliminated Boeing’s F-18 for technical reasons and has expressed the need for a first lot of 26 aircraft for the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant. This contract will ensure to have a homogeneous fleet between the 36 Rafales with the IAF and the Rafale Marine. Significantly, French Minister for Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu had visited the INS Vikrant a day before the talks with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on November 28.
