NEW DELHI: The recent developments in Afghanistan, cross-border terrorism, India’s border row with China and bilateral strategic ties were among a wide range of issues discussed during the third annual Defence Dialogue between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his French counterpart Florence Parly on Friday.
“The ministers reviewed the existing military-to-military cooperation, which has increased in spite of pandemic challenges. They discussed ways to increase defence cooperation in all domains,” the Ministry of Defence said.
A major highlight of the talks was an “in-depth” discussion on how French defence majors can collaborate with Indian firms or set up production facilities on their own in India, sources said.
Ahead of the talks, Parly said France was ready to provide additional Rafale jets to India and was fully committed to supporting the ‘Make in India’ initiative and further integrating the Indian manufacturers into its global supply chains.
The MoD statement said the two dignitaries expressed commitment to work together to enhance cooperation in bilateral, regional and multilateral forums.
France is the current chair of Indian Ocean Naval Symposium and will take over the presidency of the European Union from January 1, 2022.
The two ministers decided to work closely on a number of issues during the French presidency.
Describing the talks as “excellent”, Singh said India-France strategic partnership is more relevant today
than ever. Giving a talk at Aspen Centre later, the French minister rooted for multilateralism and rules-based international order.
Speaking about the Indo-Pacific, she said, “We want to preserve the Indo-Pacific as an open and inclusive area. It must be free from any coercion and based on compliance with international law and multilateralism. To us, the Indo-Pacific is not an artificial juxtaposition of the Indian and Pacific oceans.”
Earlier, Parly called on PM Narendra Modi and met NSA Ajit Doval.