France Current Affairs One-liners — Last 12 months

Thu, 01 Oct 2026

• INS Trishul reached Toulon, France, on 22 September 2026 for the 24th edition of Varuna, the annual bilateral maritime exercise of the Indian and French navies (reported 1 October 2026).

Mon, 28 Sept 2026

• On 28 September 2026 a delegation led by French Minister for Higher Education, Research and Space Philippe Baptiste met MoS Jitendra Singh in New Delhi to widen space cooperation.

Sat, 26 Sept 2026

• The second edition of the IAF's multilateral air exercise Tarang Shakti was inaugurated at Air Force Station Jodhpur on 26 September 2026 and runs until 12 October, with air forces of seven friendly foreign countries.

Tue, 22 Sept 2026

• On 22 September 2026, INS Trishul arrived at Toulon, France, to take part in the 24th edition of VARUNA, the bilateral maritime exercise between the Indian Navy and the French Navy.

Thu, 10 Sept 2026

• On 10 September 2026, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the first International Space Summit in Paris, hosted at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron, by video conference.

Sun, 06 Sept 2026

• On 6 September 2026, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the inauguration of the BAPS Swaminarayan Hindu Mandir in Paris by video conference, calling it a new milestone in India–France cultural relations.

Fri, 04 Sept 2026

• On 4 September 2026, Union Minister Jitendra Singh and French Minister Philippe Baptiste held a virtual meeting on deepening space cooperation ahead of the International Space Summit in Paris.

Fri, 03 Jul 2026

• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and French Economy and Finance Minister Roland Lescure co-chaired the India-France Economic and Financial Dialogue in Aix-en-Provence on 3 July 2026, discussing critical minerals, cross-investment and high-speed rail.

Thu, 18 Jun 2026

• On 18 June 2026 in Paris, PM Narendra Modi, accompanied by French President Emmanuel Macron, took part in VivaTech 2026, where India is the AI Country Partner.

Wed, 17 Jun 2026

• On 17 June 2026 at the G7 Summit in Evian, France, PM Narendra Modi met US President Donald Trump and addressed the outreach session on the safe, rapid and efficient rollout of Artificial Intelligence.

Tue, 16 Jun 2026

• On 16 June 2026 at the G7 Summit in Evian, France, PM Narendra Modi met Canadian PM Mark Carney and addressed the outreach session 'Forging New Partnerships and Rebuilding International Solidarity'.

Thu, 07 May 2026

• On 7 May 2026 Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh held a video meeting with France's Minister for Higher Education, Research and Space Philippe Baptiste, who proposed closer cooperation in human spaceflight, as both sides noted 2026 is the Indo-French Year of Innovation.

Thu, 16 Apr 2026

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a phone call from French President Emmanuel Macron on 16 April 2026, and the two leaders agreed on the urgent need to restore safety and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

Sun, 29 Mar 2026

• On 29 March 2026 the Paris city council elected Emmanuel Grégoire as Mayor of Paris with 103 votes, succeeding Anne Hidalgo.

Thu, 19 Mar 2026

• On 19 March 2026 Prime Minister Narendra Modi held phone conversations with France's President Macron, Malaysia's PM Anwar Ibrahim, Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, Jordan's King Abdullah II and Qatar's Amir Sheikh Tamim, calling for de-escalation in West Asia.

Mon, 23 Feb 2026

• India and France signed a Protocol amending their Double Taxation Avoidance Convention of 29 September 1992, the Finance Ministry announced on 23 February 2026, giving full capital-gains taxing rights to the country where a company is resident and deleting the MFN clause.

Wed, 18 Feb 2026

• Health Minister J. P. Nadda and French President Emmanuel Macron inaugurated the Indo-French Centre for AI in Health (IF-CAIH) at AIIMS, New Delhi, on 18 February 2026.

Tue, 17 Feb 2026

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron elevated India–France relations to a 'Special Global Strategic Partnership' and jointly inaugurated the 2026 India–France Year of Innovation in Mumbai on 17 February 2026.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a National Centre of Excellence for Skilling in Aeronautics and Defence at the National Skill Training Institute (NSTI), Kanpur, with France, during the joint press statement with President Macron in Mumbai on 17 February 2026.
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and French Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin co-chaired the 6th India–France Annual Defence Dialogue in Bengaluru, Karnataka, on 17 February 2026.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron virtually inaugurated, from Mumbai, the Tata Advanced Systems final assembly line of the Airbus H125 light utility helicopter at Vemagal, Karnataka, on 17 February 2026.

Tue, 20 Jan 2026

• The Indian Navy's sail training ship INS Sudarshini was flagged off from Kochi on 20 January 2026 for Lokayan 26, a ten-month transoceanic expedition covering about 22,000 nautical miles.

Mon, 22 Dec 2025

• India Optel Limited signed a collaboration agreement with France's Safran Electronics & Defense in New Delhi on 22 December 2025 for transfer of production of the SIGMA 30N inertial navigation system and the CM3-MR direct firing sight.

Thu, 20 Nov 2025

• The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and France's Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) signed a Technical Agreement at DRDO Bhawan, New Delhi on 20 November 2025 to deepen collaboration in defence research and development.

Sat, 15 Nov 2025

• The Indian Air Force is taking part in the 8th edition of the bilateral air exercise Garuda 25 with the French Air and Space Force at Mont-de-Marsan, France from 16 to 27 November 2025, the Defence Ministry said on 15 November 2025.

Thu, 23 Oct 2025

• India was re-elected Vice-Chairperson of the Bureau for the Asia-Pacific group at the 10th Conference of Parties to the International Convention against Doping in Sport, held at UNESCO Paris on 20–22 October 2025.