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French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday emphasised that free speech must be grounded in respect and transparency, while asserting that the bilateral relationship between India and France is currently at its "highest point".
Speaking on the sidelines of the India AI Impact Summit 2026, Macron addressed concerns around free speech, stating, "As for the free speech, first, I saw a lot of people just quoting a small part of what I say, my point was just to say I do believe in free speech, but what does it mean? Free speech means I will listen to you, you will listen to me, and we are in an equal relationship." He criticised certain practises and said his belief in free expression is rooted in mutual listening and equality. "A lot of people defending free speech do it based on an algorithm without any transparency, with a lot of bias, and with their own political agenda; it's not free speech. And when people clearly help spread hate speech and racist speech all around the place, it's not about free speech. It's a jungle," the French President said. "I really believe in free speech based on respect and transparency because this is the free speech in a democracy," he added. On the India-France bilateral relationship, the French President said the partnership stands at its highest point, with both countries seeking to deepen cooperation across technology, innovation and strategic sectors. "And as for the bilateral relationship, I really believe it's at the highest point, and we want to do much more again because it's based on our relationship," he said. He highlighted the invitation extended to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a state visit to France in June for the G7 Summit, noting that PM Modi will be a special guest at the summit. Macron also confirmed that he has accepted a reciprocal invitation to visit India next year. "This is why I invited Prime Minister Modi on a state visit to France in June, and he will come, and he will be the special guest of our G7 as the president of the BRICS, and I will come back next year, he invited me, and I would honour this invitation to go further," he added. Macron's comments come amid his high-profile visit to India, where he has engaged with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and attended the AI Impact Summit 2026 in the national capital, focusing on responsible AI governance and digital cooperation. (ANI)
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