A special thaw

The United States is perhaps the most celebrated emerging strategic partner of India, and Russia is duly acknowledged as the most reliable traditional ally, but apart from these friends, there is another nation that has been progressing steadily towards strengthening strategic bilateral relations with India for the last 25 years, without making much noise. That nation is France. Given that each nation in the world holds its distinct geopolitical significance, comparisons between ties with nations will be a futile thing. However, for the sake of understanding, it may be noted that France provides India with a mixture of benefits that Russia and the US provide separately; and lately, it has started outsmarting India’s top two allies. Like the United States, France shares critical technologies pertaining to space and defence sectors, among others, with India. More importantly, the degree of comfort in transacting with France is far greater than in the case of the US that is generally more guarded and protective. France, on the other hand, has been more generous and open in its approach. It is widely argued that the US sees India as a lever in South Asia that can be used against China in the present and future times. While France, too, is dedicated to counter the rise of China, its relation with India is more stable and focussed on bilateral aspects. In fact, the ties between India and France have been steadfast for the last 25 years. At a time when the entire Western bloc stood against India to counter its nuclear tests — with the US even leading the sanctions against India — France made the bold decision of supporting India, and even hosted the then Prime Minister of the Asian nation. Furthermore, it has come to India’s support on multiple fora — be it for India’s inclusion in control regimes such as MTCR, Australia group, and Wassenaar arrangement, or the resolution to designate Hafiz Saeed as an international terrorist. It is in this respect that France appears to come closer to Russia in terms of reliability. It may be important to note that Russia is currently facing an internal-external turmoil due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. Also, despite keeping its ties intact with India, it has come closer to the Pakistan-China nexus. There is no doubt that Russia is still a trusted partner of India, but trust is only one factor that determines bilateral relations between any two countries. Pragmatic geopolitical calculations and changing equations cannot be sidelined under the influence of the trust factor, for the integrity and security of an entire nation is at stake. In the present day and age, India’s relationships with powerful nations like the US and Russia come with a lot of vulnerabilities, apart from advantages. It is critically important to look at both the challenges and advantages through a balanced prism. Relationships like that with France are important not only in the terms of agreements they lead to, but also because they hold immense potential to ensure a much-needed cushion in the case of major shocks in the geopolitical equations. The cherry on the cake for Indo-France relations is the mutual respect they show towards each other’s sovereignty — giving an impression that bilateral relations stand on the top of other considerations. The latest example could be the Indian Prime Minister’s visit to France amid the news of the European Parliament planning to criticize the Indian government on the management of its internal conflict in Manipur. This issue was not even brought before the Indian Prime Minister in France. This respect for sovereignty and other values of a partner nation is a guarantee for a lasting and reliable partnership. Furthermore, while the increasing depth of technological relations between India and France is mutually beneficial for the two nations, their cooperation on a range of global issues, particularly climate change and terrorism, is a good augury for the world at large. In the domain of climate change, the cooperation between the two nations on International Solar Alliance (ISA), High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People, Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) etc. bears testimony to their shared vision for global good. In sum total, the Indo-France relation is an underrated phenomenon whose time to grab the spotlight might be coming soon!