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Informist, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025

NEW DELHI – Prime Minister Narendra Modi and France President Emmanuel Macron held bilateral talks on Wednesday and discussed the ways to strengthen collaboration in technology and innovation. Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told media that the year 2026 has been agreed upon as India-France year of Innovation. "The next year, 2026, has been agreed between the two sides as the India-France Year of Innovation, and this will focus a great deal on technology, on innovation, on start-ups and academic collaboration between the two countries, and this was also something that was reviewed in the discussions," Misri said at a media briefing.

Prime Minister Modi was on a three-day visit to France which concluded Wednesday. He co-chaired the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit in Paris on Tuesday. Following the summit, Modi, along with Macron, addressed India-France Chief Executive Officers Forum, which saw the participation of leading businesses from both countries in a variety of areas. 

The two leaders reviewed progress in areas of defence, space, civil nuclear cooperation, health, as well as people-to-people cooperation between the two sides, the foreign secretary said. "The Prime Minister and the President held discussions on-board the aircraft. These discussions covered the entire gamut of our deep and diverse strategic partnership. The two leaders appreciated recent progress that has taken place in all of these areas, in keeping with both the Horizon 2047 roadmap and in the defence area, in particular in keeping with the defence industrial roadmap that was adopted last year," Misri said.

The foreign secretary informed that artificial intelligence was also major area of the bilateral discussion between the two sides. "Insofar as cooperation in Artificial Intelligence is concerned, naturally with the just-concluded AI Action Summit and the proposal by India, which has been accepted of India hosting the next AI Summit, AI was also a major area of bilateral discussion between the two sides," he said.

The external affairs ministry informed that 10 outcomes in the areas of technology and innovation, civil nuclear energy, triangular cooperation, environment, culture and people-to-people relations were finalised during the visit. An agreement was signed for hosting 10 Indian start-ups at the French Start-up incubator Station F.

The leaders also exchanged views on recent geopolitical developments in Europe, in West Asia, in the Indo-Pacific, and discussed a number of these issues of global and regional importance. The two leaders also called for enhancing trade and investment ties.

Prime Minister Modi and Macron also visited the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor in Cadarache. "During the visit, the leaders appreciated the progress of International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, including the assembly of the world's largest Tokamak, where ultimately 500 MW of fusion power will be produced by creating, containing and controlling burning plasma. The leaders also appreciated the dedication of the ITER engineers and scientists working on the project," the ministry of external affairs said in statement.

Modi left for Washington, D.C. from France where he will hold bilateral talks with US President Donald Trump on Thursday. End

Reported by Kuldeep Singh

Edited by Deepshikha Bhardwaj

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