French President Macron speaks on Rafale deal controversy: Here's what he said

The controversy over the Rs 58,000 crore Rafale deal took a new turn last week after Hollande's claimed published by French publication 'Mediapart'.

French President Emmanuel Macron / AFP PHOTO

UNITED NATIONS: The war of words between the Congress and the BJP has intensified after a French media report quoted former French president Francois Hollande as purportedly saying that the Indian government proposed Reliance Defence as offset partner for Dassault Aviation in the Rafale jet fighter deal. The controversy over the Rs 58,000 crore deal took a new turn last week after Hollande's claimed published by French publication 'Mediapart'. The BJP alleged that Congress President Rahul Gandhi is involved in a "conspiracy internationally" and Hollande is part of the "nexus" to sabotage the procurement, and claimed that the Congress chief wants it scrapped to help a firm linked to Vadra. The Congress alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi changed the Rafale deal in order to benefit his "friend" Anil Ambani. Speaking on the controversy over the purchase of fighter jets, French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday said that the Rafale deal was a "government-to-government" discussion and he was not in power when the was signed between India and France. Addressing a press conference on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session, Macron was asked if the Indian government had at any point told France or Dassault - the French aerospace major - that they had to accept Reliance as the Indian partner for the Rafale deal. "I will be very clear. It was a government-to-government discussion and I just want to refer to what Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi very clearly said a few days ago," Macron told reporters here Tuesday without elaborating. "I don't have any other comment. I was not in charge at that time and I know that we have very clear rules," he said in his first comment on the issue. Macron, who assumed the presidency in May last year, emphasised that this is a government-to-government discussion and "this contract is part of a broader framework which is military and defence" coalition between India and France. "This one is very important to me because this is a strategic" coalition and not just an industrial relation. "That is my point. I just want to refer to what PM Modi said on this situation," he said. (With inputs from PTI)