French President Emmanuel Macron arrives in India for G20 Summit

NEW DELHI: French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday arrived in New Delhi to attend the G20 Summit hosted by India under its Presidency on September 9-10. Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Anupriya Patel received Macron at Delhi’s Palam airport. He was given a rousing welcome at the airport with a cultural dance performance.

Macron is due to have bilateral meetings over the two-day summit with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva among others. Macron, who was among the last leaders to arrive in the country is slated to have a working lunch meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 10, according to sources. Previously, the two leaders met in July during PM Modi's visit to France to attend the Bastille Day Parade.

The French president will also have bilateral meetings with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, and Indonesian President Joko Widodo among others, according to the Embassy of France in India.

A statement from Macron’s office said, "The G20 Summit will enable France’s Head of State to continue his ongoing dialogue with his counterparts from every continent, so as to combat the risks of fragmentation of the world. It will also be an opportunity to make progress in implementing joint responses to the major global challenges that can only be tackled effectively through multilateral action: peace and stability, poverty alleviation, protection of climate and our planet, food security, and digital regulation."

It further said, "The Summit will also provide an opportunity to follow up on the Summit for a New Global Financial Pact held in Paris last June. This had led to the establishment of the Paris Agenda for People and the Planet, providing a framework for collective action to ensure that no country has to choose between fighting poverty and protecting the planet."

India is hosting the G20 Leaders Summit at the newly inaugurated Bharat Mandapam Convention Centre at Pragati Maidan on September 9-10. India assumed the G20 presidency on December 1 last year and about 200 meetings related to G20 were organized in 60 cities across the country.

The 18th G20 Summit in New Delhi will be a culmination of all the G20 processes and meetings held throughout the year among ministers, senior officials, and civil societies. Prior to his departure, Macron is likely to hold a press conference at the venue on Sunday afternoon, according to the Embassy of France in India. He will depart for Bangladesh for a bilateral visit on Sunday afternoon. India and France have traditionally close and friendly relations.

Since the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two nations in 1947, and the upgrading of the partnership to the strategic level in 1998, India and France have consistently acted together, building on a high level of mutual trust, shared commitment to the principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter and common values rooted in international law, according to the Ministry of External Affairs.

To mark the 25th anniversary of the Indo-French partnership, both countries agreed to adopt a roadmap to set the course for the bilateral relationship up to 2047, which will celebrate the centenary of India’s independence, the centenary of the diplomatic ties between the two countries and 50 years of the strategic partnership.