From Rafales to renewables: The India-France story is ripe for a recast

For 25 years, defence, diplomacy, and shared talk of “strategic autonomy” framed the India-France partnership. Paris backed New Delhi after the 1998 nuclear tests, and both sides now see each other as trusted partners in the Indo-Pacific. The Horizon 2047 roadmap, adopted in 2023, commits them to a “partnership between equals” until the centenary of India’s independence. 

Yet the economic leg of this relationship still limps behind the political one. Bilateral trade in goods has certainly grown. It has more than doubled over the past decade, reaching approximately $15.11 billion in 2023-24, up from $6.4 billion in 2009-10, with a 34% increase between 2019-20 and 2023-24. These are respectable figures, but not yet the numbers of a truly major economic partnership. 

For two countries that trust each other on fighter jets, submarines, and UN reform, this gap is glaring. Defence sales, however strategic, cannot sustain the 21st-century partnership on their own. The next phase should focus less on individual platforms and more on shared production, shared technology, and shared prosperity, grounded in green growth and digital transformation. Defence built trust. Trade must now match it. The “Rafales to renewables” arc captures the shift that both sides say they want. 

On the military side, cooperation has evolved from mere buyer-seller ties to a more comprehensive industrial conversation. France remains a key partner for submarines and maritime surveillance. The two navies coordinate closely in the Indian Ocean, and both governments describe their Indo-Pacific vision in almost identical language—open, rules-based, and multipolar. 

On the economic side, however, ambition lags behind rhetoric. India-France trade, at around $15 billion, appears modest. 

Some French businesses clearly see the opportunity. But many others still sit at the margins. On the Indian side, too few companies treat France as their primary gateway to Europe, despite Paris's efforts to position itself as the hub for green industry and AI. 

Suppose the partnership lives up to its strategic label. In that case, both governments must now deliberately transition from Rafales to renewables and from high political symbolism to high-impact trade and investment. Three domains stand out. 

First pillar: Green and blue transitions as growth engines 

Climate and oceans are no longer soft add-ons. They are investment and jobs stories. India and France adopted a detailed roadmap on the blue economy and ocean governance in 2022. This framework now requires a robust economic foundation. 

That means joint ventures in offshore wind, green hydrogen, grid-scale storage, and coastal infrastructure. French firms already bring strengths in renewables, urban transport and sustainable construction; Indian firms bring scale, cost innovation, and execution capacity. The two governments should establish a dedicated India-France Green Transition Facility that blends public funds and private capital to de-risk projects in Indian cities and industrial corridors. 

The blue economy roadmap also offers a path from communiqués to contracts. Coastal states, such as Kerala, are already exploring EU partnerships to address erosion, extreme weather, and the need for climate-resilient infrastructure. Indo-French consortia could design and finance shoreline protection, green ports, and resilient fishing harbours—not only in India, but along the Indian Ocean littoral. This would tie climate action, maritime security and commercial opportunities into a coherent Indo-Pacific economic agenda. 

Second pillar: Digital public goods and AI as a trade corridor 

The second big opportunity lies in the digital sphere. India and France have already signalled that they see digital public infrastructure, cybersecurity, start-ups, and AI as core planks of their partnership. In February 2025, they co-chaired the Paris Artificial Intelligence Action Summit. The joint statement, along with an India–France declaration on AI, emphasised the importance of safe AI, open-source tools, and data protection, and committed to supporting digital public infrastructures for AI. 

This is not just a governance conversation. It is an economic opportunity. India has built a powerful stack of digital public goods, ranging from payments to identity management, health, and logistics. France hosts cutting-edge AI start-ups, supercomputing projects, and deep-tech research ecosystems. An India-France Digital Corridor could connect these strengths in at least three ways. 

First, by setting up joint AI and data centre projects in India, leveraging French capital and technology, alongside Indian scale. Second, by enabling Indian fintech, healthtech, and govtech firms to use France as an entry point into European markets, while French cyber and privacy firms pilot solutions in India’s vast, real-world digital ecosystem. Third, by co-shaping standards in forums such as the G20, OECD, and the UN. Standards-setting is now a form of trade policy. 

Third pillar: From platforms to co-production and SME links 

The third domain is the most traditional: trade and industrial cooperation. But even here, the mindset must change. For too long, defence sales have defined the economic narrative. 

Rafale fighters, helicopters, and submarine technologies matter, but they should be the starting point for a broader industrial partnership, not the endpoint. Co-production and co-development, including for export to friendly third markets in Africa and the Indo-Pacific, can turn lumpy, episodic deals into steady industrial ecosystems. 

Beyond defence, French companies are present across sectors such as aerospace, automobiles, retail, luxury, and infrastructure. Indian firms are expanding their European footprints. Yet SMEs in both countries rarely come into contact with each other. Trade promotion remains skewed towards big corporates and headline projects. 

Here, both governments should treat India-France economic ties as a laboratory. They could establish an India-France SME and Start-up Bridge, featuring a one-stop digital platform, standardised model contracts, and a joint fund for pilot projects in green manufacturing, agritech, medtech, and creative industries. Credit lines from development finance institutions could be tied to measurable trade and employment outcomes. 

At the same time, the larger India-EU trade pact will shape the operating context. A balanced, forward-looking India-EU trade and investment agreement—encompassing tariffs, services, and investment protection—would amplify the impact of bilateral efforts between India and France. France, as a leading voice in the EU and India’s third-largest EU trading partner, can play a key role in steering the conversation towards a pragmatic compromise. 

What “going big” on trade really means 

If both capitals are serious, they should set a clear, shared ambition. One sensible marker would be to double bilateral trade again by 2030, not just through more of the same, but by diversifying into new sectors and moving up the value chain. That target, though, should be backed by four concrete shifts. 

One, establish an India–France Economic Fast-Track Mechanism that meets quarterly, with a mandate to unblock stalled projects, iron out regulatory frictions, and align incentive schemes. Two, make climate and digital the centre, not the periphery, of trade talks. Tie market access, technology transfer, and financing into structured “green industrial partnerships” and “digital innovation compacts” with measurable milestones. 

Three, give cities and regions a bigger role. Sub-national cooperation—in ports, metro systems, water management, and creative industries—can generate visible benefits and steady business. The blue economy and coastal resilience agenda already hints at how local partnerships can anchor global goals. Four, invest in people-to-people infrastructure. Scholarships, mutual recognition of degrees, apprenticeships in green and digital trades, and more effortless mobility for professionals will all shape long-term trade patterns. It is easier to sign contracts when alumni networks and business friendships already exist. 

A mature partnership needs a bigger economic story 

India wants trusted, technologically sophisticated partners beyond its immediate region. France wants reliable, large-scale democratic markets beyond its immediate continent. Both speak of strategic autonomy, open seas, climate responsibility and digital sovereignty. 

Those shared instincts have already produced impressive defence and diplomatic cooperation. However, a mature partnership cannot rely solely on Rafales. It needs renewables, resilient coastlines, data centres, AI labs, start-up corridors, and busy SME supply chains. 

Going big on trade is not just about larger numbers on a chart. It is about aligning economic structures with political intent. If India and France can do that—anchoring green transitions, digital public goods, and co-production at the heart of their relationship—they will not only upgrade their bilateral ties. They will also sketch, in convenient terms, what a 21st-century partnership between equals can look like. 

(The author is executive director at the Centre for Legislative Research and Advocacy, New Delhi. Views are personal.)