India, France discuss defence and security cooperation

During the talks, India and France reiterated their commitment to take forward their strategic partnership to “ensure peace, stability and security in the Indo-Pacific based on common beliefs in rules-based international order and strategic autonomy”, the external affairs ministry said in a statement.

Updated on: Jan 6, 2023, 05:14:13 IST

By Rezaul H Laskar

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National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and his French counterpart Emmanuel Bonne on Thursday held wide-ranging discussions on defence and security cooperation, with the talks also preparing the grounds for a visit to India by French President Emmanuel Macron.

NSA Ajit Doval and Emmanuel Bonne, Diplomatic Adviser to the President of France co-chaired the annual India-France Strategic Dialogue, in New Delhi. (ANI)

During the talks, India and France reiterated their commitment to take forward their strategic partnership to “ensure peace, stability and security in the Indo-Pacific based on common beliefs in rules-based international order and strategic autonomy”, the external affairs ministry said in a statement.

Besides participating in the 36th session of the India-French Strategic Dialogue with Doval, Bonne met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, external affairs minister S Jaishankar and G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant. In addition to being the diplomatic advisor to the French president, Bonne is France’s G7-G20 sherpa. People familiar with the matter said the talks also paved the way for a visit by Macron, who is expected to travel to India sometime in the first quarter. The French side proposed a visit in March but the final dates are yet to be locked down, the people said. March is set to be a busy month in the diplomatic calendar, with other high-profile visits and an expected meeting of G20 foreign ministers.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said Doval and Bonne held discussions on a range of issues, including the current global security situation in the context of Ukraine conflict, regional security in the context of Afghanistan, counter-terrorism, cyber-security and defence cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.

The two sides discussed “expanding the scope of defence cooperation to include co-development of futuristic technologies in line with India’s priorities of Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat”, the ministry’s statement said.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rezaul H Laskar
Rezaul Hasan Laskar is Foreign Editor with the Hindustan Times, which he joined in 2015. He began as a journalist in his hometown of Shillong in northeast India and has worked in newspapers and wire services over the years. He moved to New Delhi in 1997 and initially focused on defence, national security, Jammu and Kashmir and the northeast, while also working of foreign policy and international relations. He has been part of the media delegation accompanying PMs on foreign visits and has reported from destinations ranging from Tibet to Ukraine. Between 2007 and 2013, he was the Press Trust of India correspondent in Pakistan, one of only two Indian journalists allowed to report from the country. He extensively covered Pakistan’s domestic politics and the life of the common people, as well as the fallout of the 2008 Mumbai attacks on India-Pakistan relations and the subsequent trial in Pakistan of the suspects involved in the attack. As part of his reportage in Pakistan, he travelled the breadth of the country, from the Swat Valley to Balochistan. Reza’s first gig in journalism was writing a weekly music column, and music – especially classic rock – remains a keen interest. He is also a movie buff and a keen photographer.Read More

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