Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the announcement on Monday after holding talks with French President Francois Hollande, who is on a three-day visit to New Delhi.
Advertisement
Hollande said: “It is a decisive step for India to purchase the fighter jets and also for France to make them available to a great country like India”.
Thousands gathered in New Delhi amid tight security Tuesday for India’s annual Republic Day parade, a pomp-filled spectacle of military might featuring camels and daredevil stunt riders, with French President Francois Hollande the chief guest.
India and France have signed an agreement on the deal, first announced in 2012, but have yet to settle financial issues, the leaders of both countries said Monday.
Both leaders played up their interest in cooperating in the fight against worldwide militant groups, with Hollande saying France and its allies would strike “again and again” against Islamic State (IS).
It features the heads of Hollande, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls and British Prime Minister David Cameron with targets superimposed on them, and purports to show nine jihadists involved in November’s slaughter.
Hollande also appreciated PM Modi’s role in Climate change conference held at Paris last December and said the PM played a very important role in the success of summit.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) was originally expected to buy 126 Rafale aircraft, with the first 18 jets to be manufactured in France from the second quarter of 2015 onwards, while the remaining 108 were to be locally built following a technology transfer to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). India’s friendship with France is special… “There are 122 nations like that, and the French President helped me in this initiative”, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi here today. “We have just signed, through our two defense ministers, an intergovernmental agreement”, Hollande said. “We must therefore cooperate more on security”, Hollande said on Sunday.
The two countries have pitched in to ameliorate the infrastructural facilities in India through new railway projects, rejuvenation of rivers, and the upgrading of locomotives and their stations.
Advertisement
The French leader will be the chief guest at India’s Republic Day on Tuesday – when India celebrates its constitution with a military parade full of pomp and pageantry in the heart of New Delhi.
