MOVES ARE afoot to host French President Emmanuel Macron in Jaipur and New Delhi next week, when he visits India as the Chief Guest for the 75th Republic Day celebrations. Macron, who is scheduled to arrive for a two-day visit on January 25, is likely to be accompanied by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on a roadshow in Jaipur soon after his arrival. Preparations are also underway to felicitate him at iconic forts and palaces in and around the city. A French advance delegation has been camping in Jaipur to make the necessary arrangements, which is expected to involve a brief stopover at the city’s Amer Fort. While the Jaipur leg is expected to be high on pomp and show, the Delhi leg will see high-level talks. Modi is also expected to host Macron for a Rajasthani-style meal on January 25. Officials are working on the Jaipur leg of the visit, and are trying to showcase the “colours of India”, just like it was done during then US President Bill Clinton’s visit in March 2000. Both the leaders are expected to reach Delhi on the night of January 25, in time of the Republic Day parade the next day. This will be the sixth time that a French leader will be the Chief Guest at the Republic Day celebrations. Modi was the Guest of Honour at the Bastille Day Parade in Paris on July 14, 2023. This was followed by Macron's visit to India for the G20 Summit on September 8-9 last year. As strategic partners, India and France share a high degree of convergence on a range of regional and global issues, and officials are working on some deliverables. The two sides are trying to do some stock-taking in the short period of time since the July announcements. Beyond defence, space and civil-nuclear, New Delhi and Paris have expanded their partnership to include domains of counter-terrorism, maritime security, climate change, renewable and sustainable development, digitisation, and cybersecurity among others. An invitation to be the Republic Day Chief Guest is highly symbolic from the Indian government's perspective. New Delhi has been weaving a strategy with hospitality to decide its Chief Guest for the Republic Day. The choice is dictated by a number of reasons — strategic and diplomatic, business interest and international geo-politics.
