French President Emmanuel Macron will visit India on January 26 for the Republic Day celebrations, the Elysee French presidential palace said on Friday, adding that Macron would be welcomed as the chief guest.
The Ministry of External Affairs also confirmed the same in a statement saying, “At the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, H.E. Mr. Emmanuel Macron, President of France, will be visiting India as the Chief Guest for the 75th Republic Day celebrations.”
“As strategic partners, India and France share a high degree of convergence on a range of regional and global issues. This year, we are celebrating the 25th anniversary of the India-France Strategic Partnership,” the statement added.
This will be the sixth time that a French President will be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations. President Macron had visited India for the G20 Summit on September 8-9.
Meanwhile, Macron, in a post on X, thanked PM Modi for the invite. “Thank you for your invitation, my dear friend
@NarendraModi. India, on your Republic Day, I’ll be here to celebrate with you!”
Earlier, sources had stated that India and France were in talks for inviting Macron as the chief guest for the Republic Day parade in January 2024.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the guest of honour at French national day celebrations in July.
India was in talks with Leaders of Quad countries for the Republic Day celebrations but that couldn’t work out as US President Joe Biden was not available.
