French Defence Minister Florence Parly will undertake her maiden two-day official visit to India from Friday to strengthen all aspects of France’s…
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French Defence Minister Florence Parly will undertake her maiden two-day official visit to India from Friday to strengthen all aspects of France’s fast developing defence cooperation with this country, its foremost Asian strategic partner, the French Embassy announced on Thursday.
She will also discuss with Indian leaders the broad contours of the State visit of French President Emmanuel Macron towards the end of the year for a meeting of the International Solar Alliance.
She will hold delegation-level talks with her Indian counterpart Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday. Their talks will range from defence operational cooperation, in particular on maritime security, joint exercises of the armed forces, counter-terrorism, to industrial and technological partnership under the Make in India initiative. They will also review progress made in major cooperation projects.
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In the afternoon, the minister will travel to Mihan Sez, Nagpur, where she will participate in the foundation stone-laying ceremony of Dassault Reliance Aerospace Limited (DRAL).
On 28 October, Minister Parly will call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for wide-ranging talks ahead of the State visit of President Macron. She will also meet National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.
The French Minister will conclude her India trip in Mumbai, with visits to Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL) and the Western Naval Command. At MDL shipyard, she will visit the yard where Scorpene submarines are being made in India with transfer of technology under the P75 project by MDL, India’s leading public sector shipbuilders, in collaboration with French shipbuilding major, Naval Group (formerly DCNS).
She will also board the INS Kalvari, the first of these six Scorpene submarines to have been delivered to the Indian Navy, an eloquent symbol of the close Indo-French strategic partnership.
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