On January 26, 2024, French President Emmanuel Macron was the special guest of the 75th Republic Day celebrations in the Indian capital New Delhi. The two leaders followed the military parade through the streets of New Delhi, which included artillery firing, tanks and mounted troops.[1]
With this visit, it is aimed to take strategic ties to a higher level. Last year, Macron hosted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as his guest at the Bastille Day celebrations in Paris. In line with the principle of reciprocity, this time India is hosting Macron in his own home. A contingent of French soldiers attended the ceremony in New Delhi. Similarly, Indian troops marched towards the Champs-Elysées on Bastille Day.
The United States of America (USA) and other Western actors have begun to move closer to India as a military and economic counterweight to China. France, a major Asia-Pacific power, has been trying to improve its ties with India in order to protect and sustain its interests in the region.
Just before Macron’s visit to New Delhi, the French Presidential Office declared that India is “an important partner in contributing to international peace and security”.[2] France hopes to develop its military contracts with India, which has already purchased Rafale fighter jets and Scorpene-class submarines. In this sense, India also needs French defense industry products to modernize its armed forces and diversify its arms suppliers.
India has been giving more weight to the Western axis while trying to maintain its strategic autonomy in its foreign policy. With recent developments, France may have become India’s “most reliable strategic partner” in its foreign policy. This is because New Delhi takes great care to maintain a balanced line with foreign countries in such diplomatic activities. Unlike other Western leaders, Macron’s invitation to this special ceremony has a different meaning. France is already India’s largest strategic partner in Europe and its second largest arms supplier. Macron’s participation in this ceremony as a “special invitee” and “chief guest” shows that France is India’s friend in all circumstances. [3]
The growing cooperation between France and India also reflects an alignment on regional partnerships and foreign policy decisions. Because while other Western powers are polarizing in the region, France and India are striving for a peaceful, free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific. Indeed, France and India are two important countries with major economic and geopolitical interests in the Indo-Pacific region. At the same time, these two powers in the Indian Ocean are advancing their partnership under the “Joint Strategic Vision of India-France Cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region” signed in 2018.
France, an established power with colonies in both the Indian and Pacific oceans, sees the Indo-Pacific region as a “geographical reality”. Approximately 93 percent of France’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is located in the Indo-Pacific region. France has also deployed 8300 French troops in this region. This demonstrates the strategic importance of the Indo-Pacific region for France.
Following Prime Minister Modi’s Bastille Day visit to France in July 2023, the two countries issued a joint statement highlighting their strong defense cooperation and their aim to expand their industrial relations in areas such as joint fighter jet engine development.[4] As France is India’s second largest defense exporter, it could be a valuable partner for indigenous defense production, knowledge sharing and research.
Increased concrete cooperation between France and India could strengthen the diplomatic efforts of like-minded allies in the region, while at the same time offering a credible angle of engagement for Pacific island states, particularly on development, security and climate change adaptation. France’s Indo-Pacific strategy prioritizes the preservation of regional sovereignty and access to shared maritime space. In recent years, France has been actively involved in exercises in the Indo-Pacific, including joint exercises with Western and other regional powers.
As the center of gravity of global competition shifts from the West to the Pacific, France is adapting to this conjunctural shift. Both France and India can be categorized as actors that do not follow the US strategy of China at sea. These two actors favor only peaceful engagement in the Indo-Pacific. Their main objective is to preserve the rules-based regional order and they seek greater cooperation with regional actors that eschew bloc politics.
[1] “India celebrates France’s Macron at annual military parade”, Le Monde, https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2024/01/26/india-celebrates-france-s-macron-at-annual-military-parade_6467690_4.html, (Date Accessed: 01.02.2024).
[2] Ibıd.
[3] “India Announces Republic Day Chief Guest: French President Emmanuel Macron”, Orfonline, https://t.ly/HT3p5, (Date Accessed: 01.02.2024).
[4] “India, France Increase Defense Ties With New Rafale Jet And Submarine Buys”, Breaking Defense, https://breakingdefense.com/2023/07/india-france-increase-defense-ties-with-new-rafale-jet-and-submarine-buys/, (Date Accessed: 01.02.2024).
