Indian troops dazzle crowd on French national day parade

France has marked Bastille Day national holiday with the annual military march led this year by a detachment of the Indian army, which paraded for the first time on foreign soil.

Four hundred Indian soldiers, dressed in ceremonial uniforms of red and black headdress, cummerbunds, white puttees and gloves and gleaming sabres, marched ahead of thousands of French soldiers down the Champs Elysees avenue past French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his guest of honour, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who greeted the military from the presidential stand.

India, the world’s biggest democracy and an emerging economic power, has recently strengthened its strategic and economic relations with France, which ranks as India’s third arms supplier.

The decision to honour the Indian troops has been viewed as an attempt to further these ties. France is keen to sell India its Rafale jet fighters, while French nuclear power producer Areva has recently signed a draft deal for the sale of up to six nuclear reactors in the country.

Anti-nuclear militants have protested against the accord and what they see as its subsequent celebration on the Champs Elysees.
    

Tuesday's parade also set the stage for a celebration of the 75th anniversary of France's Air Force. Mirage planes and Alpha jets flew over the march, releasing red, white and blue trails to form the French flag above thousands of spectators.

Tributes were paid to France’s civilian forces, police and fire fighters, who also paraded down the avenue.   

Military units who have recently returned from Afghanistan and other combat zones abroad were given prominent positions in the parade, emphasising the French forces’ return to the international scene.      

The French-German brigade participated in the march alongside French troops, underscoring the close alliance between the two former world war foes, said FRANCE 24’s Karim Yahiaoui.

The parade came to a spectacular end as paratroopers landed in front of the presidential stand carrying French, European, Indian and German flags, in reference to the different themes from this year’s parade.

Bastille day is held every year on July 14 to mark the anniversary of the storming of the infamous Paris jail in 1789 by revolutionaries, an event that heralded France's transition from a monarchy to a republic.

French rock hero Johnny Halliday will provide the high point of the celebrations with a free concert under the Eiffel Tower later on Tuesday. The concert will be followed by a massive firework display to mark the tower's 120th anniversary.

But once again, the national holiday was also marked by violence, with over 300 burned cars during the night. Over the years, Bastille Day has provided a platform for a number of youths from impoverished neighbourhoods and suburbs to vent their frustration.

Officials say police carried out hundreds of arrests across the country.