India and France on Tuesday upgraded their bilateral relations to the “special global strategic partnership”
The two governments renewed an agreement for defence cooperation and agreed to set up a joint advanced technology development group to explore opportunities to co-develop emerging and critical technologies “in identified niche areas to retain a competitive military edge, and mitigate supply chain vulnerabilities”.
India and France have been strategic partners since 1998, allowing them to cooperate in sensitive sectors such as defence, security and technology.
The decisions were announced following talks in Mumbai between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron.
The two leaders inaugurated a final assembly line for the H125 helicopters at Vemagal, Karnataka. The facility will be operated by Indian firm Tata Advanced Systems and French aerospace company Airbus, a joint statement between the two countries said.
New Delhi and Paris also announced a joint venture between Indian state-owned Bharat Electronics Limited and French defence and security firm Safran to produce HAMMER modular air-to-ground missiles in India, and reciprocal deployment of officers at Indian Army and French Land Forces establishments.
The two countries also agreed to amend protocols on the double tax avoidance pact.
Modi and Macron reaffirmed their commitment to cooperate on the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, a planned infrastructure project aimed at boosting connectivity between the three regions.
At a press meeting alongside Modi, Macron said on Tuesday that India is among France’s most trusted partners. “From Rafale jets to submarines…we are expanding defence cooperation,” he said.
The comments came less than a week after the Indian government’s Defence Acquisition Council on February 12 approved proposals to buy several military equipment, including additional Rafale fighter jets for the Indian Air Force.
The majority of the Rafale aircraft being ordered will be manufactured in India, the defence ministry had said.
While the defence ministry did not state the number of Rafales being purchased, news reports widely said it would be 114, with 90 of them being manufactured in India. Some of the remaining jets are likely to be acquired in fly-away condition to meet the Air Force’s immediate operational needs.
The Air Force already operates the Rafales. The deal to procure 36 of them was signed in 2016 at a cost of Rs 58,000 crore.
In April, India had signed a deal with France to buy 26 Rafale Marine fighter aircraft for the Indian Navy at a cost of about Rs 64,000 crore. The Rafale Marine is an aircraft carrier-borne fighter jet.
Modi accepted Macron’s invitation for India to participate in the Group of Seven Summit that France will host this year, the joint statement said.
Macron will travel to Delhi on Wednesday for a summit on artificial intelligence.
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