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ARTICLE AD BOX
India and France person shared adjacent ties since 1947, formalized done the landmark Strategic Partnership launched connected 26 January 1998, a first-ever for India with a Western nation, and the archetypal for France with a non-Western nation.
This concern reflects their imaginativeness of enhancing strategical autonomy done heavy bilateral cooperation. Defence and security, civilian atomic collaboration and abstraction are halfway pillars of this relationship. This concern has broadened significantly, encompassing artificial intelligence, subject and technology, innovation, bluish economy, environment, renewable energy, sustainable development, and trilateral cooperation, with a beardown absorption connected the Indo-Pacific region.India and France stock a robust defence concern that has steadily expanded crossed military, industrial, and strategical domains, with a increasing accent connected Atmanirbhar Bharat. The sixth Annual Defence Dialogue, co-chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and French Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin successful Bengaluru connected 17 February 2026, renewed the 10‑year defence practice statement and announced reciprocal serviceman deployments astatine each other’s service establishments—signaling deeper organization integration.
High-level subject exchanges person been frequent, with visits by elder chiefs from some sides, including the French Navy Chief’s information successful the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium and the Indian Air Chief’s sojourn to France successful June 2026. Major milestones see the commissioning of the sixth Scorpene submarine successful January 2025 and transportation of 36 Rafale jets successful 2022. Further, the 2025 statement for 26 Rafale-M craft for the Indian Navy incorporates exertion transfer, indigenous weapons integration, and constitution of fuselage accumulation and MRO facilities successful India.Industrial practice has accelerated, highlighted by Safran’s Hyderabad-based deep-level craft motor MRO centre inaugurated successful November 2025, susceptible of servicing 300 LEAP engines annually. Safran has besides announced an M88 motor MRO store and partnered with Bharat Electronics Limited to manufacture Hammer air-to-surface weapons. The M88 motor is utilized connected the Rafale combatant aircraft. Additionally, the H125 chopper assembly enactment was inaugurated successful Karnataka successful February 2026.Operational practice betwixt the equipped forces of the 2 nations is arsenic strong. The 3 services of some the countries clasp idiosyncratic exercises with each different annually. These wargames are Exercise Shakti for the army, the aerial forces of some the nations clasp Exercise Garuda and some navies enactment successful Exercise Varuna. Over the years, these wargames person have grown successful scale. The complemented by information successful multilateral drills similar Milan and La Perouse.
Maritime practice is further reinforced done regular larboard calls. India’s information successful France’s AsterX abstraction exercises reflects expanding defence-space collaboration.
