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New Delhi, December 22: France’s President Emmanuel Macron has rescued India from an acute embarrassment by agreeing to be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations next January after US President Joe Biden excused himself in an indirect expression of discontent with India on the issue of its alleged threats to Sikh separatists operating from the US.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced on Friday that Macron has acknowledged the invite from India and announced that he will be here on January 26 for the festivities, The Hindu reported.
“As Strategic Partners, India and France share a high degree of convergence on a range of regional and global issues. This year, we are celebrating the 25th anniversary of the India-France Strategic Partnership,” said the MEA in the announcement.
France is emerging as an alternative source of military equipment. After the deal over Rafale fighters for the Indian Air Force, the Indian Navy is scouting for a naval version of Rafale.
France has emerged as one of the key defence partners of India in recent years and the two sides have maintained consistent high-level contacts.
On Mr. Macron’s invite, Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier this year was Guest of Honour at the Bastille Day parade in Paris on July 14. President Macron visited New Delhi during the G-20 Summit on September 9 and 10 when he had also travelled to Dhaka for a short visit.
Macron has energised French diplomacy towards the Indian Ocean and the South Asian region and has visited several countries in the region in the recent past including India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Papua New Guinea and New Caledonia.
Accepting the invite from the Indian Prime Minister, Macron said in a social media post: “Thank you for your invitation, my dear friend Narendra Modi. India, on your Republic Day, I’ll be here to celebrate with you.”
Earlier, U.S. President Joe Biden was expected to travel to India to participate in the Quad summit and also be the chief guest at the Republic Day parade. The Hindu had earlier reported that the U.S. President’s 2024 visit to Delhi was being “rescheduled” indicating that the visit would now possibly take place later in the year.
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