India and France are set to strengthen defence ties as Rajnath Singh and Catherine Vautrin co-chair the 6th Annual Defence Dialogue in Bengaluru.
Rajnath Singh
The Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh, will co-chair the 6th India-France Annual Defence Dialogue with France’s Minister of the Armed Forces and Veterans Affairs, Catherine Vautrin, in Bengaluru on February 17, as per a statement issued by the Ministry of Defence.
The dialogue will cover the entire range of defence cooperation between the two nations, with special focus on enhancing the level of industrial cooperation between them.
During the dialogue, an agreement on defence cooperation is expected to be renewed for another 10 years, further strengthening the bilateral relationship. In addition, an MoU on the joint venture to produce Hammer missiles is expected to be signed in the presence of both ministers.
It is expected that during the dialogue, there will be an announcement on the reciprocal deputation of officers between the Indian Army and the French Land Forces establishments.
The two ministers are expected to attend the virtual launch of Tata Airbus's joint venture, namely the H125 Light Utility Helicopter Final Assembly, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron at Vemagal, Karnataka, as stated by the release.
The relationship between India and France has always featured defence as an important part of their bilateral relations, as witnessed by recent high-profile interactions between the two countries. For instance, Prime Minister Modi was the Guest of Honour at the Bastille Day Parade event held in July 2023. On the other hand, French President Macron was the Chief Guest at India's Republic Day Parade 2024.
The India-EU Security & Defence Partnership has also underscored India's commitment to enhancing defence cooperation with European countries.
India and France have steadily strengthened military cooperation, regularly conducting three major exercises:
Exercise Shakti (Army)
Exercise Varuna (Navy)
Exercise Garuda (Air Force)
In addition, there are several other joint engagements across different branches of the armed forces.
This will be Catherine Vautrin’s first visit to India after taking office as the French Defence Minister on October 12, 2025.
India-France Annual Defence Dialogue is a formal mechanism for reviewing and guiding defence cooperation between the two nations. The 5th edition of the dialogue was held in France from October 11-13, 2023.
