New Delhi: French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin arrived in New Delhi on February 6 evening for talks with Indian leaders on bolstering economic and commercial co-operation and giving a new dimension to a multi-faceted strategic partnership.

Raffarin, who is leading a high-power delegation, including four key ministers and a large business team, will on February 7 call on President, Vice-President and hold wide-ranging discussions with Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on the entire gamut of bilateral relations besides exchanging views on Iraq crisis, Afghanistan, Middle East developments and other regional and international issues of importance.

He is being accompanied by Finance, Economy and Industry Minister Francis Mer, Transport and Housing Minister Gilles de Robien, Science and Technology Minister Claudie Haignere and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Renault Muselier.

India attached "great importance" to the visit. Raffarin during his recent meeting with Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani in Paris had spoken about the "special relationship France had with India".

New Delhi has also been appreciative of France emerging as a very important interlocutor as a member of the P-5, G-8 (of which it is the current president) and the European Union.

PTI