External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s January 4-9, 2026, tour to France and Luxembourg marked a pivotal moment in India’s European diplomacy, his maiden foreign outing of the year. The visit highlighted converging interests and collaborative opportunities between India and Europe.
Kicking off in France, Jaishankar met President Emmanuel Macron and engaged in bilateral discussions with Minister Jean-Noël Barrot. The agenda spanned breakthroughs in innovation-tech ecosystems, startups, healthcare, education, and mobility, alongside advancements in defense, security, space exploration, nuclear cooperation, maritime domains, and economic strategies.
Global and regional hotspots were candidly discussed, fostering aligned viewpoints. As Guest of Honour at the 31st French Ambassadors’ Conference—the first non-European FM to do so—Jaishankar articulated on geopolitical flux and the imperative of strategic autonomy.
A landmark was the first India-Weimar ministerial huddle with France, Germany, and Poland FMs, where Jaishankar advocated deepening India-Europe and India-EU frameworks.
Parliamentary outreach included interactions with French lawmakers from friendship groups and key committees on defence and foreign affairs. Separate meetings with IEA’s Fatih Birol and UNESCO’s Khalid Al-Anani enriched multilateral perspectives.
In Luxembourg, dialogues with PM Luc Frieden and Deputy PM Xavier Bettel encompassed a comprehensive audit of ties in politics, trade-investment, fintech, innovation, digitalization, space, and cultural exchanges. Mutual insights on international affairs were shared.
Jaishankar’s address to the Indian diaspora praised their contributions to bilateral goodwill and India’s regional stature.
Overall, the tour signals India’s proactive stance in nurturing Franco-Indian and Indo-Luxembourg partnerships, reinforcing the broader India-EU strategic edifice against a backdrop of global uncertainties.