The French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday avoided giving a direct answer on the Rafale deal controversy that is raging in India and said he was not in charge when the multi-billion dollar deal for 36 aircrafts was signed between India and France.
While interacting with the press on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, late Tuesday night, Macron was asked by NDTV whether the government of India had proposed to the French government or Rafale’s manufacturer Dassault to pick Anil Ambani’s Reliance Defence as the India partner, as claimed by former French president Francois Hollande.
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Macron, in his response, did not deny the charges directly. “I was not in charge at that time but I know that we have very clear rules and this is a government-to-government discussion and this contract is part of a broader framework which is a military and defense coalition between India and France.”
“I just want to refer to what Prime Minister Modi said a few days ago,” he added, without elaborating further.
Macron was elected the president of France in May last year. The Rafale jet deal was announced by PM Narendra Modi in 2016 when Francois Hollande was the French president.
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