Double taxation avoided, 114 Rafale order, HAMMER missiles; India-France seal crucial agreements

NEW DELHI: India and France signed a landmark agreement to avoid double taxation aimed at promoting mutual investment. The two nations also signed a deal worth Rs 3.25 lakh crore to buy 114 Rafale fighter jets from France for the Indian Air Force.

This comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron held a bilateral meeting at the Lok Bhavan in Mumbai. The two countries will deploy military personnel to each other. Defence agreements will be renewed.

The elimination of double taxation will reduce the tax liability of Indian companies to France. The Prime Minister pointed out that freedom from double taxation will boost mutual trade, investment and mobility. PM Modi said that the move would help both countries to prosper.

Cooperation will also be carried out in areas such as minerals, biotechnology, finance, start-ups, science and technology, health, renewable energy and skill development. The leaders also inaugurated the India-France Innovation 2026 programme to strengthen people-to-people ties. It will also be used to connect industrialists in sectors such as defence, energy, space and new technologies. The two leaders virtually inaugurated the P-125 helicopter assembly unit in Karnataka.

Agreements were also reached on joint projects such as the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Center in France, the Indo-French Center for Digital Sciences and Technology, the Indo-French Center for AI in Health at AIIMS, Delhi, the Indo-French Center for Metabolic Health Sciences in France, the Center for Excellence for Aeronautics Training, and research related to infectious diseases.

1. France's Safran Company and India's Bharat Electronics Limited signed an agreement to manufacture deadly Hammer precision-guided missiles in India

2. This missile played a crucial role in destroying terrorist camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir during Operation Sindoor

3. Center of Excellence to oversee the manufacturing, distribution, maintenance and repair of Hammer Guidance Kit