NEW DELHI (AP) French President Francois Hollande was wrapping up his three-day visit to India Tuesday by watching an elaborate display of Indian military hardware and marching bands taking part in India’s Republic Day celebrations.
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The delegation accompanying French President Francois Hollande and embassy officials here expressed happiness over the two countries coming together to celebrate India’s 67th Republic Day.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi invited Hollande as chief guest in a show of solidarity with France after Islamist attacks in Paris last November killed 130 – recalling a 2008 assault on Mumbai that killed 166.
India signed an agreement with France on Monday to purchase French-built Rafale fighter planes as India looks to modernize its aging Soviet-era military equipment.
Hollande described the deal on Rafale as “a decisive step”, adding: “There remain financial issues which will be sorted out in a couple of days”.
MORE REACTORS AT JAITAPUR Among other deals inked with France, the government has chose to go in for more nuclear reactors – from 2 to 6 – at Jaitapur in Maharashtra as part of the Indo-French civil nuclear agreement of 2010.
India’s plans have drawn global arms makers into one of the world’s biggest markets.
Modi and Hollande travelled by metro train from Delhi to Gurgaon, for the foundation stone laying ceremony of the ISA, which was agreed during the COP21 climate conference in Paris.
They also welcomed the partnerships between Engineering Projects India Limited (EPI) and nine French companies which will be able to contribute to major infrastructures projects in India, the Joint Statement said.
Hollande and Modi stepped into the Rafale deal previous year, ordering government-to-government talks after commercial negotiations with Dassault had collapsed.
“India and France are aware of terror threats because both our countries have been targeted over the past few months”. The two sides had “a very productive discussion” during the delegation level talks at Hyderabad House here which lasted 90 minutes, beyond the expected duration. The two countries signed over a dozen agreements during the visit, including one on counter-terrorism cooperation. “Daesh is claiming the crimes”, Hollande said.
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The two leaders “have set some timelines to move on the various nuclear understandings that we have”, Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar said at a media briefing on Monday. He became the fifth French President to be the chief guest in the Republic Day ceremony of India.
