India and France on Monday signed nine agreements, including a declaration on nuclear energy and a pact on defence cooperation, after talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and visiting French President Jacques Chirac.The declaration on the development of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes was signed by Atomic Energy Commission chairman Anil Kakodkar and French foreign minister Philippe Douste Blazy in the presence of Singh and Chirac. The two countries noted that the declaration was an important step forward in the realisation of the objective of the two countries to conclude a bilateral civil and nuclear cooperation agreement and in taking forward the long-standing Indo-France cooperation in the sector.
