Nod for jet, sub deals as Modi lands in Paris

Modi’s participation as guest of honour in the French National Day, or Bastille Day, celebrations on Friday will be the highlight of the 36-hour visit

Updated on: Jul 14, 2023, 24:44:17 IST

By Rezaul H Laskar, Rahul Singh, New Delhi

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India’s defence acquisition council (DAC) on Thursday cleared the Indian Navy’s proposals to acquire 26 Rafale Marine combat jets and three more Scorpene-class submarines from France — deals set to be announced in Paris, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed later in the day for an official visit that aims to bolster bilateral ties and open new avenues of cooperation.

Modi’s participation as guest of honour in the French National Day, or Bastille Day, celebrations on Friday will be the highlight of the 36-hour visit.

“I am confident that my visit will provide a new impetus to our strategic partnership,” Modi said in a statement ahead of his departure for Paris. “I look forward to meeting President [Emmanuel] Macron and holding wide-ranging discussions on taking forward this longstanding and time-tested partnership over the next 25 years,” he added.

On his arrival in Paris, Modi was received at the airport by French premier Elisabeth Borne, and given a ceremonial welcome and a guard of honour. “Landed in Paris. Looking forward to boosting India-France cooperation during this visit,” he tweeted.

Modi said in his statement that the visit is “particularly special” as he will join Macron for the Bastille Day Parade in Paris as the guest of honour. An Indian tri-services contingent will be part of the parade, while three French-origin Rafale jets of the Indian Air Force (IAF) will join a fly-past on the occasion.

Referring to the 25th anniversary of the India-France strategic partnership, Modi said it is rooted in deep trust and commitment, and the two countries cooperate closely in areas such as defence, space, civil nuclear, blue economy, trade, investment, education, culture and people-to-people ties.

Besides hosting a private dinner for Modi late on Thursday, Macron will hold formal talks with the Indian leader on Friday after they participate in the military parade. Both leaders will also participate in an India-France CEOs Forum and Modi will separately meet prominent personalities. The visit will conclude with a banquet hosted by Macron at the Louvre Museum.

Modi also said that he looked forward to his interactions with the French leadership, including Borne, Senate president Gerard Larcher, and National Assembly president Yael Braun-Pivet.

Meanwhile, in New Delhi, the decks were cleared for the announcement of the two big-ticket defence deals as India’s DAC on Thursday approved the Indian Navy’s proposals to buy 26 Rafale Marine jets and three more Scorpene submarines to sharpen its operational capabilities, officials aware of the matter said.

DAC, headed by defence minister Rajnath Singh, accorded its acceptance of necessity (AoN) for the Rafale M jets for use with the first indigenous aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, and for building three Scorpene submarines in the country through transfer of technology. Under India’s defence procurement rules, the AoN by the council is the first step towards buying military hardware.

The two deals are estimated to have a combined value of €9 billion to €10 billion, though the final price will be determined after complex negotiations between India and France, the officials said, asking not to be named.

The Rafale procurement will include weapons, simulators, spares, associated equipment, crew training and logistics support for the Indian Navy from the French government based on an inter-governmental agreement, the defence ministry said in a statement.

The Rafale M edged out the American F/A-18 Super Hornet in a direct competition to equip the navy with new deck-based fighters.

The price and other terms of purchase will be negotiated with the French government after factoring in all relevant aspects, including the comparative procurement price of similar aircraft by other countries, the statement said.

“Further, integration of Indian designed equipment and establishment of maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) hub for various systems will be incorporated into the contract documents after due negotiations,” it said.

IAF operates 36 Rafale jets bought from France at a cost of ₹59,000 crore, and the aircraft’s naval variant will bring commonality with the IAF’s fighters, creating advantages in training, maintenance and logistics support.

The Rafale M jets are being imported as an interim measure to meet the navy’s needs until India develops its own twin-engine deck-based fighter (TEDBF). The first prototype of TEDBF could make its maiden flight by 2026 and be ready for production by 2031, HT has learnt.

The procurement of three submarines under the “Buy (Indian)” category will be a follow-on order to an earlier deal whereby state-run Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) in Mumbai built six Scorpene or Kalvari class submarines with technology from France’s Naval Group under a ₹23,562-crore programme called Project-75. The sixth vessel is set to be inducted in the Indian Navy early next year.

“The procurement of additional submarines, with higher indigenous content, will not only help in maintaining required force level and operational readiness of the Indian Navy, but also create significant employment opportunities in the domestic sector,” the statement said. “It will also help MDL in further enhancing its capability and expertise in submarine construction.”

The three submarines will be fitted with air-independent propulsion (AIP) systems to allow them to remain submerged for longer.

From Paris, Modi will travel to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for an official visit on July 15. “I look forward to meeting my friend, H.H. Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi,” he said in his departure statement.

India and the UAE are engaged across a wide range of sectors such as trade, investments, energy, food security, science and technology, education, fintech, defence, security, and robust people-to-people ties, he said.

Last year, Mohamed bin Zayed and Modi agreed on a roadmap on the future of the bilateral partnership, and Modi said he looks forward to “discussing with him how to further deepen our ties”.

The UAE will be hosting the COP28 this year, and Modi said he would discuss ways to strengthen “global cooperation towards accelerating climate action to facilitate the energy transition and implementation of the Paris Agreement”.

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
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rahul Singh
Rahul Singh is Defence Editor at Hindustan Times and has covered military affairs and national security for nearly 25 years. Apart from extensive and deep reporting on the Indian military, including several newsbreaks that have set the national news agenda over the years, Rahul has reported from conflict zones including Jammu & Kashmir, India’s North-east and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Rahul has co-authored the bestselling 'India's Most Fearless' series of books on recent Indian military operations. Widely read and translated into multiple languages, the books place an emphasis on firsthand accounts of daring missions across the three services. His work has been adapted into web series and films including the National Award-winning Amaran. Rahul comes from an Army background and attended schools across the country before completing his education from Panjab University, Chandigarh. Grew up playing tennis, now mostly cheers from the sidelines. Works in Delhi, heart in the mountains.Read More

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