India, France to step up defence, security ties

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 6

India and France have agreed to strengthen bilateral defence and security partnership through enhanced intelligence and information sharing, operational cooperation and bolstering mutual capabilities.

The annual India-France Strategic Dialogue co-chaired by NSA Ajit Doval and French President’s Diplomatic Advisor Emmanuel Bonne in Paris also agreed to pursue new initiatives in maritime, space and cyber domains, according to an official news release.

The French presidency of the EU in the first half of 2022 is expected to give further shape to EU’s engagement in the Indo-Pacific region, including in security, connectivity and economic development.

With both France and India aiming for a major defence and security partnership in the Indo Pacific, NSA Doval also called on French President Emmanuel Macron, Defence Minister Florence Parly and French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian. The areas discussed were expansion of bilateral and regional cooperation, dealing with new threats and support to India’s defence industrialisation, said the official release.

NSA Doval also discussed the long-term challenges in the Indo-Pacific region; Afghanistan, Africa, Southeast Asia and West Asia.

With territories retained since colonial time in the Indo-Pacific, France is a major player and has been seeking to step up its activities bilaterally with regional maritime powers as well as through the EU.

During his last visit to India in January, Bonne had called on PM Narendra Modi and interacted with NSA Doval. He had also said France was supportive of India on Kashmir and does not allow China to play “procedural games” at UNSC.

But French opposition to the Chinese is nuanced. Three weeks later, at the China-France annual dialogue co-chaired by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Bonne said Beijing was “an important strategic cooperative partner of France”. But defence and security, that usually denotes the closeness between nations, was not mentioned.

Two months later in April this year, Bonne and Wang Yi spoke on the phone. Bonne, who had initiated the call, said France was ready to strengthen communication with China in civil nuclear energy, aerospace and public health, and jointly address climate change, biodiversity and other global challenges.