By IRNA
New Delhi : French Foreign Minister, Bernard Kouchner, Thursday arrived in New Delhi on a four-day India visit.
Kouchner will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and hold talks with External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on bilateral and global issues.
“The two ministers will discuss different aspects of bilateral relations and current international issues,” officials said.
French President Nicholas Sarkozy is scheduled to visit India next month and Kouchner is expected to firm up the visit’s agenda during talks with Mukherjee.
Sarkozy, will be the Chief Guest at the Republic Day ceremony on 26th January.
Kouchner, will also participate in a debate with NGOs on the theme of “International Solidarity for Health”, where Labour Minister Oscar Fernandes, Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma are expected to be present.
India and France have a Strategic Partnership since 1998, spanning cooperation in a wide range of fields including political, economic, defence and high technology areas like space and civilian nuclear energy.