Sansad TV Perspective: India-France Strategic Ties

In the series Sansad TV Perspective, we bring you an analysis of the discussion featured on the insightful programme ‘Perspective’ on Sansad TV, on various important topics affecting India and also the world. This analysis will help you immensely for the IAS exam, especially the mains exam, where a well-rounded understanding of topics is a prerequisite for writing answers that fetch good marks.

In this article, we feature the discussion on the topic: ‘India-France Strategic Ties’.

Anchor: Vishal Dahiya 

Guests:

• Dr. Mohan Kumar, Former Ambassador
• Sandeep Aggarwal, Chairman, Industry Affairs Committee, PHDCCI
• Lt. Gen. VK Saxena (Retd.), Distinguished Fellow, VIF
• Prof. Gulshan Sachdeva, School of International Studies, JNU

Details: 

• India and France entered into a Strategic Partnership in 1998. 
• The India and France relationship is based on close cooperation in the sectors of defence, civil nuclear energy, space and security, cyber security, counter-terrorism, and intelligence and now includes a strong Indo-Pacific component as well. 
• Both nations also have important bilateral investments and trade and commercial cooperation, particularly in sectors involving IT corridors, smart cities, railways, capital and trade exchanges, skill development, etc. 
• India and France have a range of regular institutional dialogue. India-France Strategic Dialogue takes place between NSAs from both sides. 

Areas of convergence between the two countries: 

• India and France support a multi-polar world order. France has continued to support India’s claim for permanent membership of the Security Council and the reforms of the United Nations. 
• France has provided consistent support to India’s candidature for membership in all four Multilateral Export Control regimes namely,
  • Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), 
  • The Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), 
  • The Wassenaar Arrangement (WA) and 
  • The Australia Group (AG).
• India and France have consistently condemned terrorism and have resolved to work together for the adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) in the UN.
• Both countries have deeper cooperation in the field of defence: 
  • Purchase of Rafale aircraft: The inter-governmental agreement for the purchase of 36 Rafale jets by India in flyaway condition.
  • P-75 Scorpene Project: The contract for six Scorpene submarines supplied to India. 
• Joint exercises include Varuna (navy), Garuda (air force), and Shakti (army).
• India and France issued a “Joint Vision for Space Cooperation”.
  • The Joint Vision spells out the concrete areas of future cooperation in this field. ISRO and CNES will realise their third joint satellite mission TRISHNA which is meant for ecosystem stress and water use monitoring as also accommodation of a French instrument on India’s OCEANSAT – 3 satellite.
• A landmark agreement on civil nuclear cooperation was signed between India and France in 2008. Paris also played a critical role in limiting India’s isolation in the non-proliferation order after the 1998 nuclear tests.
• France is the 11th largest foreign investor in India.
  • It is the 11th largest foreign investor in India with a cumulative investment of $10.31 billion from April 2000 to June 2022, which represents 1.70% of the total foreign direct investment inflows into India.
  • Both India and France have important bilateral investments and trade and commercial cooperation. Almost 1000 French companies are present in India with a total turnover of US$ 20 billion. 
  • A Joint Economic Committee exists at the level of Ministers of Commerce and Foreign Trade from both sides. 
  • Seven bilateral joint working groups in various fields exist which are 
    • IT & Telecommunications 
    • Roads 
    • Sustainable Urban Development
    • Agriculture and Food
    • Processing
    • Mineral Exploration and Development
    • Energy
    • Post
• People-to-people contact: It is estimated that the Indian community, including NRIs in mainland France numbers around 109,000, largely originating from the French enclaves of Puducherry, Karaikal, Yanam, and Mahe. Additionally, there are a large number of tourists that come to India from France. 
• Freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific region is another area of participation between the two countries. The rising claim of China in this region is creating more problems for the rule-based world. 

India and France together can play an instrumental role in ensuring a world where peace and tranquillity remain intact, and where a rule-based order is followed. A deeper relationship between the two countries is a ray of hope for the future. 

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