NEW DELHI: India and UAE on Tuesday agreed to further strengthen defence ties with training exchanges, formalising the Coast Guard- to Coast Guard cooperation and defence industry collaborations.
The Ministry of Defence in a statement said "Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held a meeting with the Crown Prince of Dubai and Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of Defence of UAE Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum at South Block, New Delhi". The dignitary is on his first official visit to India from 8 - 9 April 2025.
Expressing happiness on the current defence cooperation through institutional mechanisms, military exercises, exchange of training programmes etc, a need to scale up the defence cooperation was felt.
"Both the Ministers acknowledged that defence cooperation needs to be scaled up to match the progress made in other areas such as trade and business, in line with the vision and determination of the two leaders - Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President of UAE Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan."
The training exchanges were identified as one of the key areas of defence cooperation which would "enable understanding of each other's defence ecosystems and accelerate strengthening of bilateral defence ties."
In addition, the two leaders expressed satisfaction on the active Coast Guard-to-Coast Guard cooperation and committed to further deepen it by formalising the same through an MoU.
Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted a working lunch for His Highness the Crown Prince at his residence in Lok Kalyan Marg.
Prime Minister Modi met with the Crown Prince later and reaffirmed commitment to strengthen India-UAE Ties. Modi said that "Dubai has played a key role in advancing the India-UAE Comprehensive Strategic Partnership." This special visit reaffirms our deep-rooted friendship and paves the way for even stronger collaboration in the future, PM added.
Later, the two Ministers, convinced that close collaboration between the defence industries should be an integral part of the bilateral cooperation, emphasised on "increasing defence industry collaboration and discussed opportunities for enhancing partnership in defence manufacturing."
Both the Ministers acknowledged active participation from the two sides in each other's exhibitions & defence expos, and welcomed India-UAE Defence Partnership Forum which has the potential to result in strategic Joint Ventures and co-production projects benefiting both countries. They also agreed to focus on complementarities for the two countries in the Make-in-India and Make-in-Emirates initiatives.
Through a post on X after the meeting, the Defence Minister stated that the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with the UAE is of immense priority for India. "In the coming years, we are eager to work closely in areas such as defence cooperation, co-production and co-development projects, innovation and technology. Both India and the UAE are committed to work towards peace and prosperity in the region," Rajnath added.
The UAE has become a vital partner and reliable ally for India in the Gulf Region. A Defence Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed with the UAE in 2003, followed by an MoU on Defence Industry Cooperation in 2017. According to the Ministry of Defence, India and the UAE share a deep friendship rooted in long-standing cultural and economic connections.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) enumerated the key announcements between India and the UAE made during the visit, which "highlights the commitment of the leadership from both sides to strengthen and expand the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.", said the MEA. These included the establishment of the first ever overseas campus of the IIM-Ahmedabad and IIFT in Dubai further strengthens the educational cooperation between the two countries and positions Dubai and the UAE as a key regional and global destination for eminent Indian educational institutions.
The Dubai government has announced the allocation of a plot of land for the establishment of a 100-bed "India-UAE Friendship Hospital" in Dubai focussed on affordable healthcare to the blue-collar Indian diaspora in the UAE. It is also recognition of the contribution of millions of Indians for the development and growth of Dubai.
Another announcement included an MoU between Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL) and Drydocks World (DDW), a DP World Company,to enable development of ship repair clusters, at Kochi, Kerala and Vadinar, Gujarat synergising their mutual strengths.