August 7, 2025 8:11 AM

France battles largest wildfire in decades, one person killed

French firefighters were battling on Wednesday to control the country's biggest wildfire in almost 80 years, with the blaze in the southern Aude region having already swept through an area bigger than Paris. One person died in the village of Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse, about 30 kilometers from the city of Perpignan, the prefecture said. The fire, which spread very rapidly through forests and villages, has burnt down at least 25 houses, forcing residents and tourists to flee. Many roads are ...

June 14, 2024 1:31 PM

Indian, French governments negotiating 26 Rafale marine jet deal

India and France are carrying out negotiations for the price and other related issues for the all-important 26 Rafale Marine fighter aircraft deal for the Indian Navy. The talks were earlier supposed to be held on May 30 but were postponed to June second week, apparently in view of the pending election process of the Lok Sabha polls. The overall project is likely to be worth over Rs 50,000 crore and would help increase the number of these advanced aircraft in the Indian inventory to 62 with th...

May 7, 2024 10:19 AM

Vietnam marks 70th anniversary of the ‘historic’ Dien Bien Phu victory

War veterans, party leaders and diplomats gathered in Vietnam's Dien Bien Phu province on Tuesday for an event to mark the 70th anniversary of the country's victory over French colonial forces. The bloody, 56-day battle in the northwestern, remote valley ended on May 7, 1954, precipitating the collapse of French colonial rule. The historic Dien Bien Phu battle is considered one of the great battles of the 20th century. The French defeat led to the signing of the Geneva Accords on July 21, 19...