As guest of honour in both the United States and France within the space of a month, Indian Prime Minister Modi is surely one of the most popular leaders in the world.
Narendra Modi was the Guest of Honour at Le 14th Juillet (July 14) France’s National Day – known as Bastille Day outside France – which celebrates the French nation and commemorates the beginning of the French Revolution. It was a significant moment for many aspects of the bilateral relationship between India and France, reflecting India’s rise to the top of almost every global power centre’s diplomatic priority.
Further underlining the shared dedication of both India and France to a multipolar world, the Indo-French partnership is touching new heights of collaboration in high technology. Agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) were signed in areas such as jet engine research to power India’s fighters and helicopters, nuclear reactors and space research. The latter is particularly fascinating amidst the backdrop of the launch of India’s latest unmanned mission to the Moon, Chandrayaan-3. The Indian Moon mission launched on the same day, in an interesting coincidence.
Modi addressed a large Indian diaspora crowd in Paris on July 13, showing his vast popularity remains intact among non-resident Indians. France is host to around 65,000 Indian origin people, making it a diaspora centre. He made several important announcements that will benefit Indians living, studying and working in France. India’s renowned UPI payments system, which is being copied by developing countries around the world, will be linked to France’s national payments systems which means that Indian tourists, students and investors can now make payments in France digitally.
Of particular interest to students was the announcement that Indian students will now get a five-year long term post-study visa. This is a positive proposition for both Indians and France, as the French can now retain high-end Indian talent, while Indians studying abroad will benefit from French know-how in a working environment. France aims to attract 20,000 Indian students by 2025.
In the cultural sphere, Modi announced that a statue of the great Indian saint Thiruvallar will be installed in Cergy, France, underlining a growing fascination with Indian culture in France and Europe more broadly. Interestingly, Modi claimed to have been the first member of the Alliance Francaise in Ahmedabad in his youth, which was the first French cultural centre in India.
France and India appear to be natural partners. The colonial history that still hangs over UK-India relations is not there (no Koh-i-Noor diamond to return, no talk of potential reparations for colonialism to cause worry Britain’s FCDO), nor is the Cold War animosity that existed between India and the United States present in the background (India while officially neutral, often supported the Soviets back then).
In 1998, when India tested nuclear devices under the Atal Behari Vajpayee government, it faced sanctions and condemnation even from valued partners such as Russia. France by contrast did not sanction India. This was the start of decades of French hard work to woo India, correctly recognising the country as a rising power.
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France has long seen itself as being one of the centres of a multipolar world. What does this mean in simple terms? A multipolar world is one that is not dominated by a single power, such as the United States. There are several power centres, which balance each other out. This prevents a dominant superpower from rampaging around like a bull in a china shop, which the United States did shortly after becoming the world’s sole superpower in the 1990s.
Due to an underperforming public sector and a relative lack of industrial experience, India still needs support for critical technology such as jet engines and nuclear reactors. France, with a powerful industrial base of its own is in a great position to help. This comes at a steep financial price, of course. There is no such thing as a free lunch, however, India as the world’s fifth largest economy, can afford to pay for such consultancy and technology transfer as France is willing to share.
This suits French interests as well; Indian money can help fund new versions of French technology, that can sustain French technical independence from the US and UK. Indo-French cooperation can help India to better compete with China, whose rise and behaviour is an increasing cause of concern to both Paris and Delhi. Potential deals were also announced for fighter jets and diesel submarines worth around $13 billion at the press conference with Macron and Modi. There should be no major obstacles to these deals going through, with the support of both leaders.
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France gains in other subtle ways from Modi’s visit. It has long struggled to live up to its famed national motto of liberte, egalite, fraternite (liberty, equality, brotherhood). The country remains riven with significant political division, as tensions continue between the haves and the have-nots in France, many of them of immigrant origin, exploded outwards in the aftermath of the police shooting of a teenager in late June. Reaching out to India, which is of course not a European power, enables the French government to showcase a willingness to build partnerships with non-European peoples.
This could help to deflect a little bit from accusations of institutional racism in France. Perhaps less subtly, it could undermine Britain’s own outreach to India. In the post-Brexit word, where the UK and France are increasingly competing for investment from powers like India, an increasing openness to Indian students and business will benefit the French.
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India-EU ties will benefit significantly as France and Germany (which is also reaching out to India) both build ties with a key market. This will increase the competition with the UK to win more Indian trade and investment, which could benefit Indians looking to work and study in the UK. France is not a superpower, but it is one of the EU’S Big Three economies, so what it does diplomatically matters. Macron has long advocated European autonomy from the United States.
At a time when the aftermath of Brexit, coronavirus and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have increased the level of economic challenges for countries like France, it makes ample sense to engage India’s fast-growing economy as much as possible. The Indian diaspora is the main beneficiary in terms of ease of movement, market access and job opportunities.
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Jeevan Vipinachandran is a UK-based writer and political analyst specialising in political conflict and counter-terrorism. With a Masters in Comparative Politics: Conflict Studies from the London School of Economics (LSE), his core interest is in international relations with a special focus on the rise of India and its impact on the world stage.