TENSIONS ESCALATING BETWEEN FRANCE & TURKEY
Tensions between Turkey and France are rising, as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan calls for a boycott on French good and slams French President Emmanuel Macron's call for a "French Islam." The increased friction follows the beheading of a teacher in France after he showed his class caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad published by the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.
Schoolteacher Samuel Paty was killed after a lesson on freedom of speech to his civics class involving the cartoons. In Macron's eulogy at Paty's funeral, he said France would never give up its liberties, or its cartoons. "We will continue, professor. We will defend the freedom that you taught so well and we will promote secularism, we will not renounce caricatures, drawings, even if others retreat," Macron said earlier this month. "We will continue the fight for freedom and the freedom of which you are now the face." In response, Turkey and Pakistan accused French President of running an anti-Islamic agenda and provoking Muslims.
SCENARIO BETWEEN TURKEY AND FRANCE
Other Muslim-majority countries have weighed in. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi called for respect for the views of others, and opposed the use of violence to defend religious beliefs. Pakistan, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Iran all condemned Macron. Turkey has long seen himself as Islam's most prominent defender, especially against perceived slights from Europe. Also in 2017, Turkey expelled the Dutch ambassador amid a row over Holland's refusal to allow pro-Erdogan political rallies on its soil. But Erdogan's favorite target seems to be France, a country with which Turkey has some sharp foreign policy differences.
France had accused Turkey of escalating the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. Paris and Ankara support opposing sides in the conflict in Libya, with France backing Benghazi-based General Khalifa Hifter and Turkey supporting the U.N.–recognized government in Tripoli, which beat back Hifter's attempted attack on the Libyan capital this spring after months of fighting.
Tensions spiked in the Mediterranean earlier this year, when Turkish military vessels prevented a French frigate from searching a cargo ship suspected of violating a U.N. arms embargo by carrying weapons to Libya. France is also leading the international criticism of Turkish moves to explore for natural gas in the Eastern Mediterranean in areas claimed by Cyprus. Elsewhere, the two countries have foreign policy differences in Syria, with France being more supportive of Kurdish fighters that Turkey views as terrorists. As the feud over the Charlie Hebdo cartoons continued, Paris recalled its ambassador from Turkey in protest. Other European countries, meanwhile, have come to France's defense.
FRANCE TO FIGHT "ISLAMIC SEPARATISM"
French President Emmanuel Macron has announced plans for tougher laws to tackle what he called "Islamic separatism" and defend secular values. In a keenly awaited speech, Mr. Macron said a minority of France's estimated six million Muslims were in danger of forming a "counter-society". His proposals include stricter oversight of schooling and control over foreign funding of mosques. But some accused Mr Macron of trying to repress Islam in France. Under France's strict principles of secularism, the government is separated by law from religious institutions. The idea is that people of different religions and beliefs are equal before the law.
Groups that practice radical forms of Islam were trying to create a parallel society governed by different rules and values than those espoused by the Republic. “What we need to take on is Islamic separatism,” France’s working-class suburbs that surround its major cities—have become fertile recruiting grounds for Islamist groups. France was one of the West’s biggest sources of Islamic State militants. Many have mounted terrorist attacks in France that have killed more than 250 people over the past five years.
INDIA'S SUPPORT TO FRANCE
India condemned the criticism of Turkey and Pakistan on French President, by calling the criticism in violation of the most basic standards of international discourse. India also condemned the murder of schoolteacher as brutal terrorist attack. While France has seen repeated violent incidents around caricatures and cartoons that are deemed offensive, it is unusual for India to wade into a controversy over religion in another country.
In 2015, after the attack on Charlie Hebdo journalists and cartoonists, India condemned the incident by calling that India was on the side of those who condemn this barbaric incident. India’s support for French President could have been influenced by the fact that the charge against the French President has been led by Turkey and Pakistan, two countries that have repeatedly attacked India over Jammu and Kashmir and alleged human rights violations.
INDIA-FRANCE PARTNERSHIP
India has close strategic ties with France, especially on issues of mutual interest from counter-terrorism to defence, and nuclear to space. France had also backed the India’s proposal for a global conference on terrorism. Both the countries also support organising a new “No Money for Terror” - an International Conference on Fighting Terrorist Financing.
Two countries agreed to enhance their operational cooperation and launch fresh efforts to fight radicalisation, especially Online Radicalisation. Both countries have a defence dialogue at the Ministerial level. The three services have regular defence exercises: Exercise Shakti (Army), Exercise Varuna (Navy), Exercise Garuda (Air Force) & Recently, the Indian Air Force (IAF) has received its first batch (5 out of 36) of French Rafale aviation combat aircraft at Ambala Air base (Haryana).
In the field of Space both have decided to deepen space cooperation to meet new challenges together, whether it concerns planetary exploration or human spaceflight. France has agreed to be part of India's Venus mission, scheduled for 2025. ISRO’s Venus instrument, VIRAL (Venus Infrared Atmospheric Gases Linker) has been co-developed by Russian and French agencies.
France has been extremely supportive of India at the UN Security Council on Kashmir and Pakistan-sponsored terrorism, among other issues. The Prime Minister of India was a special invitee at the 45th G-7 Summit in Biarritz, France where India was one of the "Goodwill" partners. The two countries also have a close cooperation on climate change, and have formed & considered as the founding members of International Solar Alliance.
India’s relations with France are built on a foundation of shared democratic values and are informed by a commonality of interest in issues such as sustainable development and climate change. France also opens the pathway for deeper engagement with Europe on global issues, especially after uncertainty in the region due to Brexit. The new partnerships with France, Germany and other like-minded countries like Japan would hopefully turn out to be far more consequential for India’s influence on the global stage.
QUESTION (1-5)
Q.1 The caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad which increased the friction between France & Turkey was published by which of the following magazines?
A. The London charivari
B. Toons Mag
C. Charlie Hebdo: ANSWER
D. None of the above
Q.2 Who is the current President of Turkey who calls for boycott of french goods & made personal attacks on French President?
A. Abdullah Gul
B. Recep Tayyip Erdogan: ANSWER
C. Bashar al-Assad
D. Hassan Rouhani
Q.3 Which of the following statements is/are correct about the stand of India over the tensions escalating between France and Turkey?
A. India is supporting France: ANSWER
B. India is supporting Turkey
C. India doesn't have a definite stand over the issue
D. None of the above
Q.4 Recently, India was a special invitee at the 45th G-7 Summit which was held at which of the following places?
A. Berlin, Germany
B. Milan, Italy
C. Paris, France
D. Biarritz, France: ANSWER
Q.5 Which of the following statements is/are wrong about the relationship between India and France?
A. India has received Rafale Aviation aircraft from France
B. India & France are partners in Venus Mission scheduled for 2025
C. India and France conduct Army Exercise every year named 'Ajeya Warrior': ANSWER
D. None of the above
