India is the main center of France’s presidency of the European Union: French Ambassador

France, the main center of the European Union’s presidency in India, and the 27-nation bloc and New Delhi need to work hand-in-hand to deepen political ties, said French Ambassador Emmanuel Lenin. The ambassador called for “greater academic dynamism” between India and the European Union, saying the partnership would be the “best investment” in the future.

Lenin was speaking on Friday evening at an event marking the 35th anniversary of the European Union (EU) Erasmus-Plus program, which was established in 1987 to support student education around the world, as well as to encourage partnership between universities. The envoy said more than 6,000 Indian students have traveled to Europe to date under the Erasmus program, adding that it showed how much the EU values ​​student mobility with India.

“For the past two years, France has been the country that has welcomed the largest number of Erasmus Scholarship holders, and we are very proud of that,” Lenin said. “India is a major focus of France’s ongoing presidency of the EU Council. France strongly believes that deeper political relations between the EU and India should go hand in hand with greater academic dynamism and people-to-people contacts, “he said.

The French ambassador added: “This is the best investment we can make in the future of the EU-India partnership.” In January, France took over the presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) from Slovenia. This year, the EU and India are celebrating 60 years of strategic partnership

The dynamism of students and researchers creates a significant dimension in this relationship, said Ugo Astuto, the EU’s ambassador to India and Bhutan, adding that more Indian students are looking at the possibility of studying in Europe. ” I am happy to share that 143 Indian students have been awarded Erasmus Mundas Scholarships for higher education in Europe. It builds on the success of the last two years when Indian students were the top recipients of EU Erasmus-Plus Scholarships out of 167 countries, ”he said.

He added, “More and more Indian students are looking at the possibility of studying in the EU, exploring its world-class academic institutions, taking courses in two or more European countries, coming in contact with different cultures.” The Erasmus + program has more than 250 Indian beneficiaries, including students, researchers, academics and business people. Representatives of EU member states, Indian partner organizations and a number of experts attended the event

According to a joint press release from the French Embassy in India and the EU, Erasmus means the European Region supports action plans, education, training, youth and sports for the mobility of university students. 20,96,94 crore) for the period 2021-2027, it is the world’s largest program for student mobility and an important project for collaborative financing, ”it said. Through this program, the EU seeks to improve academically. And the dynamism and cooperation of the youth among the members of the European Union but with other regions of the world, especially with Asia, ”the statement said.