Indian PM Narendra Modi to visit Paris for Bastille Day parade as guest of honour on July 14 

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the guest of honour for this year’s Bastille Day Parade in Paris scheduled to take place on July 14.

In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the Indian armed forces’ contingent will also partake in the parade along with their French counterparts.

India and France have a shared vision on peace and security, especially in Europe and the Indo-Pacific, and uphold the objectives and the principles of the Charter of the United Nations, which are also the basis of their cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, it said.

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"This historic visit will also deliver common initiatives in order to respond to the key challenges of our time, including climate change, biodiversity loss and the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals, and will be an opportunity for India and France to reaffirm their commitment to multilateralism, including in the context of India's G20 presidency," according to the statement.

On the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the India-France Strategic Partnership, French President Emmanuel Macron extended an invitation to the Indian prime minister for this year’s Bastille Day Parade.

While Modihas visited France numerous times, with the recent one in May 2022, this would be the first time in over a decade that an Indian prime minister will attend the annual military parade, since his predecessor Manmohan Singh was invited as the Bastille Day parade guest in 2009.

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The visit of the Indian leader is expected to herald the next phase of the India-France strategic partnership by setting new and ambitious goals for strategic, cultural, scientific, academic and economic cooperation, including in a wide range of industries, the MEA said.

“Modi's presence - and Indian forces' participation in the parade - would mark a new phase in the strategic partnership between France and India," Macron's Elysee Palace office said.

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The two nations would "set new objectives for strategic, cultural, scientific, academic and economic cooperation, including in a large number of industrial sectors," it added.

Macron in a tweet reacted to the announcementin French and Hindi saying, "Dear Narendra, it will be my pleasure to welcome you to Paris as the guest of honour for the 14th of July parade."

France’s invitation to India reflects the Macron administration's growing attention towards the Indo-Pacific as it views New Delhi’s role to be crucial for the future geopolitical balance of power.

(With inputs from agencies)

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