Macron honours Modi with France’s top award
Emmanuel Macron with his wife Brigitte Macron and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends the annual Bastille Day military parade, in Paris. AP
French President Emmanuel Macron awarded Modi the grand cross of the Legion of Honour, the country's top order of merit, the presidency announced on Friday. The award was granted to salute "the role of the prime minister in the excellent relations of friendship and confidence that unite France and India", the Elysee said in a statement.
Modi said on Twitter that he had accepted the award "with great humility", hailing it as "an honour for the 1.4 billion residents of India". The Indian leader lauded his country's economic performance under his stewardship in a speech to thousands of Indians living in France on Thursday evening and stressed the country's growing clout in global affairs. "India is the mother of democracy and India is the model of diversity. This is a great strength of ours," he added.
The honouring of Modi this year reflects deepening ties between France and India, which are marking 25 years of "strategic partnership". Modi called Macron his "friend" in a speech to Indians living in France on Thursday evening. "This closeness is not limited to just the leaders of two countries, it is in fact a reflection of the unwavering friendship between India and France," modi said.
Modi Guest of Honour Modi will be guest of honour for France's Bastille Day celebrations on Friday, which are set to take place under tight security two weeks after riots swept the country. Around 45,000 policemen will be deployed nationwide in the evening while firework sales have been banned as the government aims to prevent a repeat of the urban violence seen at the end of June, following the police killing of a teenager.
The annual Bastille Day festivities, which mark the storming of the Bastille prison at the start of the French Revolution in 1789, kick off with a traditional military parade in the morning that will see over 5,000 people sweep down the Champs Elysees. The Indian defence ministry on Thursday announced its intention to procure another 26 French-made Rafale fighter jets as well as three more Scorpene-class submarines in a deal expected to be worth billions of euros.
Despite differences over the war in Ukraine, Western democracies are courting Modi and India as a military and economic counterweight to China. Macron's red carpet welcome comes weeks after Modi was given the rare honour of a White House state dinner in Washington. Macron told a meeting of military leaders on Thursday evening that India was "a giant of world history which will have a decisive role for our future".
Bastille Day is set to be a more sober affair than in previous years following five nights of rioting from June 27 after the fatal police shooting of a teenager in a Paris suburb. The main Paris fireworks display is set to go ahead and will be watched by Macron and Modi after they attend a banquet with 200 guests at the Louvre Museum.
Agence-France Presse
