In a major defence cooperation announcement between India and France, the latter has agreed to jointly manufacture aircraft engines. The announcement was made by India's defence minister Rajnath Singh after meeting with her counterpart French counterpart Florence Parly.
He stated that the administration was dedicated to increasing the budget allocation for defence purchases from Indian companies. He forecasted that India's defence and aerospace manufacturing business, which is currently valued at $85,000 crore, will grow to $1 lakh crore in 2022 and $5 lakh crore by 2047.
Rajnath said at the 94th Annual General Body Meeting of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, "Yesterday, French Defence Minister agreed to build the engine with us, so far not made in India. A major French company will come to India and make the engine in strategic partnership with an Indian company." However, the full detail of the proposed engine development is yet to be made public.
It is pertinent to note that Safran of France was in talks to produce the engine for the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), and this was the same engine. The government recently briefed Parliament that it plans to work with an international engine house to produce indigenous engines for aircraft such as the LCA variants and the AMCA. Leading engine makers had been in talks with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
India-France bilateral talks
The third annual Defence Dialogue between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his French counterpart Florence Parly on Friday covered a wide range of topics, including current developments in Afghanistan, cross-border terrorism, India's border row with China, and bilateral strategic ties.
According to reports, one of the most important aspects of the meeting was an "in-depth" discussion about how French defence companies may work with Indian companies or set up production facilities on their own in India. Prior to the discussions, Parly stated that France was ready to provide more Rafale jets to India and that it was completely committed to supporting the 'Make in India' project and further incorporating Indian manufacturers into its global supply chains.
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