French President Emmanuel Macron lands in Mumbai for his India visit
French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Mumbai on 17 February 2026 for a three-day official visit — his fourth visit to India and first to Mumbai — at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Modi and Macron elevated bilateral ties to a "Special Global Strategic Partnership," adopting a joint statement that advances the Horizon 2047 Roadmap (adopted on 14 July 2023) for long-term cooperation up to India's centenary of independence.
The two leaders inaugurated the India-France Innovation Forum and declared 2026 the "India-France Year of Innovation," announcing three new joint institutions: the Indo-French Centre for AI in Health, the Indo-French Centre for Digital Science and Technology, and the National Centre of Excellence for Skilling in Aeronautics.
More than 20 formal agreements were signed spanning defence technology, space missions, health collaboration, helicopter assembly, and satellite technology — including the virtual inauguration of an H-125 helicopter final assembly line at Vemagal, Karnataka (set up by Tata Advanced Systems in partnership with Airbus).
Both leaders jointly announced that the two countries will manufacture in India a helicopter capable of operating at extreme altitudes including those of Mount Everest.
India-France Strategic Partnership: Historical Evolution
India and France established their first formal strategic partnership in January 1998, making France the first country with which India entered such an arrangement — a landmark in India's post-Cold War foreign policy. The partnership was significantly catalyzed by France's non-condemnatory stance toward India's 1998 nuclear tests (Pokhran-II), when then-President Jacques Chirac described India's exclusion from the global nuclear order as an anomaly. In 2023, ties were further upgraded with the Horizon 2047 Roadmap, setting out a 25-year bilateral vision. The February 2026 visit marks another upgrade to "Special Global Strategic Partnership" — placing France in India's highest diplomatic tier.
Key Details
- India-France strategic partnership established: January 1998 (India's first such partnership)
- Three traditional pillars: Defence cooperation, space cooperation, civil nuclear cooperation
- Rafale deal: 36 aircraft contracted in 2016 (in addition to 6 Scorpène submarines from 2005)
- Mirage 2000 modernization contracts: 2011-2012 (51 aircraft in service since 1984)
- Horizon 2047 Roadmap: Adopted 14 July 2023 (Bastille Day)
- Current upgrade: "Special Global Strategic Partnership" (February 2026)
- France was the first country to sign a civil nuclear cooperation agreement with India (post-NSG waiver)
The Innovation Forum and Year of Innovation 2026 represent a deliberate broadening of the traditional defence-nuclear-space tripod of India-France ties into new domains — AI, digital technology, clean energy, and health — signalling a maturing partnership designed to anchor India's global technology ambitions.
Horizon 2047 Roadmap and India's Strategic Partnerships Framework
The Horizon 2047 Roadmap, signed on Bastille Day (14 July 2023), charts a 25-year vision for India-France cooperation aligned to India's centenary of independence in 2047. It encompasses 5 strategic pillars: defence and security, space, civil nuclear, people-to-people, and sustainable development. The February 2026 visit advances this roadmap with concrete institutional frameworks — the joint innovation centres being the most notable. India currently maintains "Strategic Partnerships" with over 40 countries; France's elevation to "Special Global Strategic Partnership" places it alongside a select few (such as the US and Russia) in India's diplomatic hierarchy.
Key Details
- Horizon 2047 Roadmap signed: 14 July 2023 (during Modi's state visit to France)
- India's centenary of independence: 2047
- Key sectors under Horizon 2047: Defence, space, civil nuclear, climate, digital
- New institutions announced Feb 2026: Indo-French Centre for AI in Health; Indo-French Centre for Digital Science and Technology; National Centre of Excellence for Skilling in Aeronautics
- 21 agreements signed during Macron's Feb 2026 visit
Macron's Mumbai visit with its 21+ agreements and institutional launches gives operational substance to the Horizon 2047 vision, demonstrating how India leverages high-profile bilateral summits to translate strategic frameworks into concrete deliverables in defence manufacturing, technology R&D, and skills development.
India's Defence Manufacturing Ecosystem: Make in India and Technology Partnerships
India's defence manufacturing strategy has pivoted from pure procurement to co-development and co-production, driven by the "Make in India" initiative (launched 2014) and the Defence Acquisition Procedure. The Tata Advanced Systems-Airbus H-125 assembly line at Vemagal, Karnataka, inaugurated during Macron's visit, exemplifies this model — a global OEM partnering with an Indian private-sector firm for final assembly in India. This generates domestic industrial capacity, technology transfer, and jobs while fulfilling export potential. France has been a pioneering partner in this model, through the Rafale deal (36 aircraft), Scorpène submarines, and now the Vemagal helicopter line.
Key Details
- Make in India in Defence launched: 2014
- Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020: Mandates indigenization and technology transfer
- H-125 helicopter: Manufactured by Airbus Helicopters; final assembly now in India (Tata Advanced Systems, Vemagal, Karnataka)
- Rafale: 36 aircraft contracted 2016; delivered to IAF 2020-2022
- Scorpène submarines: 6 contracted 2005 (built at Mazagon Dock, Mumbai)
- India's defence exports target: ₹50,000 crore (approx. $6 billion) by 2029
The H-125 assembly line inauguration and the announcement of a joint extreme-altitude helicopter represent the next frontier of India-France defence industrial cooperation — shifting from "buyer-seller" to genuine co-production partnerships within India's manufacturing ecosystem.
- India-France strategic partnership established: January 1998 (India's first)
- Macron's India visit: 17-19 February 2026 (fourth visit to India, first to Mumbai)
- Partnership elevated to: "Special Global Strategic Partnership"
- Year declared: India-France Year of Innovation 2026
- Agreements signed: 21+ across defence, AI, space, health, aeronautics
- Horizon 2047 Roadmap: Adopted 14 July 2023
- H-125 assembly line: Tata Advanced Systems + Airbus, Vemagal, Karnataka
- Rafale jets contracted: 36 aircraft (2016)
- Scorpène submarines: 6 units (contracted 2005, built at Mazagon Dock)
- France: First country to sign civil nuclear cooperation agreement with India