India, France reiterate strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron called upon all countries to work towards rooting out terrorist safe havens and infrastructure.

India and France have reiterated their strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations including cross-border terrorism and terror-related incidents in France and India.

In a joint statement after the talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron, the two leaders also affirmed that terrorism cannot be justified on any grounds and it should not be associated with any religion, creed, nationality and ethnicity.

The leaders also called upon all countries to work towards rooting out terrorist safe havens and infrastructure.

They appealed to the world to work for disrupting terrorist networks and their financing channels and halting cross-border movement of terrorists like Al Qaeda, ISIS, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Hizbul Mujahideen, Lashkar-e-Taiba and their affiliates and other terrorist groups threatening peace and security in South Asia and the Sahel region.

On trade, the two sides emphasized the importance of regular and sustained economic cooperation dialogue through the India-France Joint Committee.

The two leaders also stressed the importance of holding an annual dialogue at the ministerial level to deepen cooperation in the economic and financial sectors.

The two leaders welcomed the entry into force of the Framework Agreement of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and said they are looking forward to co-host the ISA Founding Conference in New Delhi on Sunday.

The leaders said, they are committed to furthering and deepening concrete projects and programmes under ISA to mobilize affordable financing for massive solar energy deployment.

In the statement, both leaders noted that India and France share a common interest to cooperate and collaborate for the stability and prosperity of Africa through development oriented initiatives such as capacity building programs and joint projects.