NEW DELHI: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday joined French Minister of Armed Forces Sebastien Lecornu in Paris on Thursday for the 5th annual defence dialogue. The two sides discussed a wide range of topics from the assessment of regional situations to the ongoing military-to-military engagements with a focus on enhancing defence-industrial cooperation.
The Ministry of Defence said, “The ministers reviewed the ongoing defence projects and discussed ways to deepen the collaboration between the defence industries of both countries. They also discussed potential collaboration in niche domains such as space, cyber and Artificial Intelligence.”
Rajnath visited the Safran engine division’s R&D centre at Gennevilliers near Paris and witnessed the latest developments in aero-engine technology. He also met the CEOs of top French defence companies with a focus on their plans for collaboration with India.
Rajnath highlighted the advantages of co-development and co-production in India, including the possibility of exports to third countries. He underlined the inherent advantages of the Indian market such as a large, skilled HR base, world-class infrastructure and a strong legal architecture. Following his arrival in Paris on Tuesday, he interacted with the Indian community.
In the first leg of his tour to Italy, Rajnath held talks with his Italian counterpart Guido Crosetto in Rome. An agreement on cooperation in the field of defence was signed after the talks to promote bilateral collaboration in varied defence domains, such as security and defence policy, R&D, education in the military field, maritime domain awareness, sharing of defence information and industrial cooperation, including co-development, co-production & setting up of joint ventures. He also met the CEOs and other top industry leaders of Italian defence companies in Rome.
Talks on inherent advantages of the Indian market
Rajnath Singh highlighted the advantages of co-development and co-production in India, including the possibility of exports to third countries. He underlined the inherent advantages of the Indian market such as a large, skilled HR base and world-class infrastructure.