Through the day in In Rajasthan Emmanuel Macron will visit the Amer Fort, where a cultural event will be held.
PM Modi will join him for the tour of Jantar Mantar a UNESCO World Heritage site. The two leaders will then take part in a joint roadshow from Jantar Mantar to Sangani gate with a stopover at Hawa Mahal.
Sources said they will have Jaipur’s special masala chai at Hawa Mahal and may pick up handicrafts items like blue pottery and the famous inlay work, for which they will pay with BHIM UPI. Handicraft kiosks have been set up adjacent to the Hawa Mahal for the dignitaries to browse.
A private dinner for Mr Macron has also been planned at the Rambag Palace.
The visit comes as the Centre and the French government continue to negotiate multi-billion dollar deals for French fighter jets and submarines for the army.
It is expected that India’s proposed procurement of 26 Rafale fighter jets and the three Scorpion submarines would also figure in the bilateral talks that will be held later.
France is India’s second largest arms supplier and has been one of its oldest and closest partners in Europe for decades.
President Macron had accepted the last minute invite for the Republic Day celebration, which has been read as a mark on the strength of the bilateral relations between the two nations.
New Delhi had dialled Paris when US President Joe Biden conveyed that he cannot come.
PM Modi was the Guest of Honour at France’s Bastille Day celebrations in July last year.

The Maldives government’s “anti-India stance” may turn out detrimental to the island nation’s development, the two main opposition parties have warned, two days after the administration announced a Chinese ship will be docking at their port.

The words of caution by the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and the Democrats comes amid strained ties between the two neighbours and the Maldives’ affinity towards China, a potentially significant geopolitical and military shift in the Indian Ocean Region.

President Mohamed Muizzu won the 2023 elections banking on an anti-India narrative, a departure from his predecessors who pursued a pro-India policy. 

“Both, the MDP and The Democrats believe alienating any development partner, and especially the country’s most long-standing ally will be extremely detrimental to the long-term development of the country,” the two opposition parties said, calling India the “most long-standing ally”.

Their assessment on “the direction in foreign policy” stated the Maldivian government must work with all development partners as it has traditionally done.

Read | Maldives Asks India To Withdraw Military Personnel By March 15: Report

“Stability and security in the Indian Ocean is vital to the stability and security of the Maldives,” said the two opposition parties, which jointly hold 55 seats in the 87-member house.

The remarks were made at a joint news conference addressed by MDP’s chairperson Fayyaz Ismail, Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Ahmed Saleem, Democrats chief MP Hassan Latheef and the Parliamentary Group Leader Ali Azim.

Maldives recently upgraded its ties with China after a diplomatic row over Maldivian ministers’ derogatory comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi post his visit to India’s Lakshadweep islands.

Read | “Welcome Vessels From Friendly Nations”: Maldives On China Spy Ship

The country has also set a March 5 deadline for India to withdraw its troops – a deadline that follows President Muizzu’s first state visit to China after being elected. This was also his first port of call after assuming office, another shift from his predecessors who traditionally have been making India their first port of call.

Earlier this week, Maldives announced it has allowed a Chinese survey ship to dock at one of its ports for replenishment, but it will not conduct any “research” in Maldivian waters.

“The Maldives has always been a welcoming destination for vessels of friendly countries, and continues to host both civilian and military vessels making port calls for peaceful purposes,” Maldives said, a remark being seen as a further evidence of Male’s pivot away from New Delhi and towards Beijing.

An independent commission probing alleged foreign interference in Canada asked the Trudeau government on Wednesday to share information about possible meddling in elections by India, a development that could aggravate already-tense Ottawa-New Delhi relations.

The commission was set up by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government in September to conduct a public inquiry into foreign meddling in Canadian affairs after reports of alleged Chinese attempts to influence elections and mounting pressure for an inquiry. Beijing has repeatedly denied any interference.

The commission said in a statement on Wednesday that it had requested the Canadian government to provide documents “relating to alleged interference by India related to the 2019 and 2021 elections.”

“The commission will also examine the flow of information within the federal government in relation to these issues, evaluate the actions taken in response, assess the federal government’s capacity to detect, deter, and counter foreign interference, and make recommendations on these issues,” it said.

The commission, led by Quebec Judge Marie-Josee Hogue, is charged with conducting an independent public inquiry into allegations of attempted foreign interference in Canadian affairs by China, Russia and others. It is expected to complete an interim report by May 3 and deliver its final report by the end of this year.

Diplomatic relations between India and Canada have frayed in recent months over Canada’s allegations linking Indian agents to the murder of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia last year. India has rejected that allegation. Canadian authorities have yet to charge anyone with the killing.

The Indian High Commission in Ottawa did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)