According to reports, India has expressed a desire to purchase Rafale planes for its Navy, and as a result, “negotiations are going to take place” and a roadmap for the next 25 years has been developed between the two nations.

‘Horizon 2047: 25th Anniversary of the India-France Strategic Partnership, Towards A Century of India-France Relations’ was published by the two nations last week during PM Modi’s visit.

The India-France Strategic Partnership is being commemorated by the two nations on its 25th anniversary.

According to sources, the roadmap’s goal is to expand the potential for cooperation rather than simply list contracts.

There was no mention of Rafale jets for the Indian Navy in “Horizon 2047” or the separate joint communiqué. According to insiders, the purchase for Scorpene submarines has not yet been confirmed, but both France and India anticipate no problems. Details like price and delivery date still need to be worked out.

The French Defence Ministry accepted the need for 26 Rafale Marine fighter jets a day before Presidents Modi and Macron met in Paris.

It was stated that the French government would negotiate the price and other parameters of the Rafale M aircraft purchase after considering all pertinent factors, including the cost of similar aircraft purchased by other nations.

In response to questions from the media, India’s Foreign Secretary Vinay Kumar Kwatra stated that the 2047 Horizon blueprint takes a comprehensive approach to security and sovereignty.

If you look at the 2047 Horizon document, it examines security and sovereignty in a more comprehensive and holistic way rather than as a collection of discrete transactions. This is due to the fact that the indicators used to measure defence partnership are not determined by a single acquisition, non-acquisition, procurement, or transaction. I should clarify that the nature of the India-France Strategic Partnership takes into account all aspects of our relationship.

Aside from defence, India and France are advancing in the area of nuclear energy, including their partnership on the Jaitapur power plant project, which aims to build six state-of-the-art European Pressurised Reactors (EPRs) in Jaitapur and provide dependable, affordable, and low-carbon energy.

The necessity to resolve many sets of difficulties, such as technical adaptation, civil liability, and funding, has sparked discussions. Leaders evaluated their progress on each of these topics, according to a source.

The two presidents in Paris spoke on civil nuclear energy. If a nation wishes to decarbonize its economy and achieve carbon neutrality, this is the best baseload option. Nearly 70–80 percent of the electricity in France today is generated by nuclear power, the source continued.

The two nations’ shared statement from last week emphasised their dedication to the Jaitapur EPR project’s success and welcomed the project’s tremendous forward progress. According to reports, both nations intend to step up their cooperation in the next months to progress this endeavour.

According to sources, the two presidents also discussed China’s role in the Indo-Pacific region and the Russia-Ukraine War.

“The Russian-Ukrainian War was discussed by the two leaders. According to Prime Minister Modi, this is not a time for war. He reiterated that, the insider claimed.

The discussions also touched on India’s G20 chairmanship efforts.

According to sources, France agrees with India’s request to include the African Union in the G20.

According to the sources, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had written to his counterparts in the Group of 20 (G20) members to urge them to grant full membership to the African Union during the group’s summit in September in New Delhi.