NEW DELHI: General (Gen) Upendra Dwivedi, Chief of the Army Staff (COAS), on Sunday departed on an official visit to France.
The Indian Army in a statement said the visit aims to “strengthen the military collaboration between India and France, exploring new avenues of cooperation and enhancing strategic partnerships between the two nations' armed forces.”
The four-day visit, from 24th to 27th February, as part of efforts to bolster India-France defence cooperation, will involve Gen Dwivedi meeting senior military personnel of the French military and visiting the various institutions.
To begin with, on 24th February 2025, “the COAS will engage with senior military leadership of France at Les Invalides, Paris. The aim of the meeting will be to foster stronger military ties between the two nations," the army said in the statement.
It will begin with a Guard of Honour followed by discussions with General Pierre Schill, CEMAT (Chef d'État-Major de l'Armée de Terre – the French Army Chief).
Further, the itinerary also includes a visit to the École Militaire, the prestigious Military School and Institution Complex in Paris, where the COAS will be briefed on Future Combat Command (CCF). Additionally, General Dwivedi will be briefed at the Technical Section of the French Army (STAT) and visit the Battle Lab Terre at Versailles.
On 25th February 2025, General Dwivedi will travel to Marseille, where he will visit the 3rd Division of the French Army and will be briefed on the mission and role of the 3rd Division, the bilateral exercise SHAKTI, India-France training cooperation, and the French Army modernisation programme (Scorpion). The following day, General Dwivedi will visit Carpiagne to witness a dynamic demonstration of the Scorpion Division with live firing exercises.
On 27th February 2025, the COAS will visit the Neuve Chapelle Indian War Memorial to lay a solemn wreath in honour of the fallen Indian soldiers who participated in World War I. Later in the day, he will deliver a talk at the École de Guerre, the French Joint Staff College, highlighting the evolving nature of modern warfare and India's strategic vision.