Tamil Nadu CM, French envoy discuss Indo-Pacific co-operation and opportunities

On December 7, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Eddappadi K Palaniswami held a progressive meeting with French ambassador Emmanuel Lenain to discuss investment opportunities, business and people-to-people exchange in the Indo-Pacific region. Taking to his official Twitter handle, Palaniswami said that he and the French envoy held productive dialogue about enhanced French companies' co-operation with Tamil Nadu related to industry R&D and sustainability. 

"Very productive talks with CM of TamilNadu, Thiru Edappadi K. Palaniswami. We discussed how French companies can contribute to Tamil Nadu's goals in industry, R&D and sustainability, as well as opportunities in the Indopacific and last but not least people-to-people exchanges,” the French envoy tweeted.

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Ambassador of France to India met the Tamil Nadu CM at the Secretariat in Chennai. Explaining India’s vision of the Indo-Pacific region earlier, India’s Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said that India pushes for the region to be "inclusive" with an emphasis on cooperation between the CLMV (Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Vietnam) nations.

Speaking at the sixth virtual India-CLMV business conclave 'Building Bridges for Constructive Development', Muraleedharan said that India envisioned a strong and peaceful Indo-Pacific region with a focus on ASEAN centrality.

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India’s Indo-Pacific connectivity agenda

The Indo-pacific region has to be "free, open, inclusive and rules-based," Muraleedharan iterated. The Minister of State for External Affairs said that it was integral for the CLMV countries to look forward to the peaceful resolution of disputes, avoidance of use or threat of use of force, and adherence to international laws, rules, and regulations.

Laying importance on ASEAN integration and India’s connectivity agenda in the region, Muraleedharan said that India was planning the utilisation of $1 billion credit line for enhancement of physical and digital connectivity among the Indo-Pacific nations. 

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(Image Credit: ANI)