France, India to boost defense, security ties

France and India have agreed to step up their bilateral defense and security partnership by improving intelligence and information sharing, conducting more joint military exercises, and pushing for new initiatives in the maritime, space, and cyber domains.

During the annual India-France Strategic Dialogue held earlier this month, French Presidential Diplomatic Advisor Emmanuel Bonne said his country is willing to support Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s vision of “Atmanirbhar Bharat” (self-reliant India) and improved defense industrialization.

According to the Indian Embassy in Paris, the two countries agreed that emerging trends in global affairs call for a closer partnership. It also stated that France and India would continue enhancing bilateral cooperation and assisting other countries in the Indo-Pacific region.