PM Modi to attend AI summit, hold talks with Macron in France

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a three-day visit to France starting Monday, during which he will co-chair an AI Action Summit with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris, hold bilateral talks with him, and address business leaders, officials said.

The two leaders are also scheduled to visit the Mazargues War Cemetery maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in Marseille on Wednesday, and pay tributes to the sacrifices made by the Indian soldiers in World War I.

Later that day, the prime minister will travel to the US as part of the second leg of his two-nation tour.

Ahead of the prime minister's visit, the official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs on Monday shared a video encapsulating the ties between India and France .

"PM @narendramodi will be heading to Paris to co-chair the AI Action Summit along with President @EmmanuelMacron of France. Take a look at the broad spectrum of India-France special relationship," the spokesperson wrote in the post.

This will be Modi's sixth visit to France, as per the information shared in the video.

At a special briefing on February 7, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri had shared the broad itinerary of the prime minister's visit to France.

Modi will reach Paris on Monday and attend a dinner hosted by Macron at the Élysée Palace, which is likely to be attended by a large number of CEOs from the tech domain along with other distinguished invitees to the summit.

On February 11, the prime minister will co-chair the AI Action Summit, along with Macron.

He will also hold discussions in both restricted and delegation formats and address the India-France CEO's Forum, Misri told reporters.

The prime minister is also scheduled to inaugurate the new Consulate General of India in Marseille with Macron.

The two leaders will later visit the Cadarache, the site of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), a high-science project that India is part of along with other countries.
Last year, India and France celebrated the 25th anniversary of their strategic partnership, covering an entire gamut of issues, from defence and security, civil nuclear matters, space to trade, economy and commerce.

The ties are now expanding to newer areas such as innovation and technology, maritime security cooperation, counter-terrorism, health cooperation, renewable energy, and development cooperation, Misri said.