India will celebrate its 77th Republic Day on January 26, with top European Union (EU) leaders Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa set to attend the grand ceremony as chief guests. This is the first time that leaders from the EU will participate as chief guests.
Over the years, several global leaders have been invited to the Republic Day celebrations.
Here's the list of Republic Day chief guests over the years:
Barack Obama
Obama became the first US president to be invited as the chief guest at Republic Day in 2015.
Francois Hollande
The former French president was invited as the chief guest to the 67th Republic Day. France and India have long‑standing defence and strategic ties.
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
In 2017, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan was invited as the Republic Day chief guest, who, at that time, was the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of the UAE. He is currently the president of the UAE.
ASEAN Leaders
Leaders from all 10 member nations of ASEAN - Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, and Brunei - were invited as chief guests in 2018.
Cyril Ramaphosa
The South African President was invited to the Republic Day celebrations as the chief guest in 2019 after Nelson Mandela in 1995. This was the first visit to India by President Ramaphosa as Head of State.
Jair Bolsonaro
In 2020, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's invitation as the Republic Day chief guest was the third time a president of Brazil had been invited to the grand event after Fernando Henrique Cardoso in 1996 and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in 2004.
2021 and 2022
India did not invite any foreign chief guest for Republic Day due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Abdel Fattah el-Sisi
For the first time, the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt was invited as the chief guest for the Republic Day celebration in 2023.
Emmanuel Macron
His visit in 2024 marked the 6th time a Head of State of France was invited as the Republic Day chief guest. France has been one of India's most‑frequent Republic Day chief guest partners for decades.
Prabowo Subianto
The President of Indonesia was invited to be the chief guest for the 76th Republic Day in 2025. His visit marked the fourth time an Indonesian leader was invited for a grand occasion.
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