Rajnath Singh holds bilateral meeting with defence ministers of 7 nations
The Prime Minister of India inaugurated the 14th edition of Asia’s biggest aero show – Aero India 2023 – at Air Force Station in Yelahanka, Bengaluru. After the inauguration a commemorative stamp was also released by PM Modi on the occasion.
The five-day event, on the theme ‘The runway to a billion opportunities’, is showcasing India’s growth in aerospace and defence capabilities. The Show is displaying indigenous equipment/technologies and forging partnerships with foreign companies, in line with the ‘Make in India, Make for the World’ vision for a secure and prosperous future.
Shri Rajnath Singh, Raksha Mantri on Monday also held bilateral meetings with the defence ministers of various countries on the side-lines of the Aero India show in Bangalore. He held bilateral meetings with the defence ministers of seven countries – Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Armenia and Congo.
He met with the Deputy Defence Minister of Armenia, Karen Brutyan; Congo’s Minister of National Defence, Charles Richard Mondjo; Tanzania’s Defence Minister, Basungwa Innocent Lugha; Defence Minister of Zimbabwe, Oppah Charm Zvinpange Muchinguri; Sri Lanka’s Minister of State for Defence, Premitha Bandara Tennakoon; Defence Minister of Nepal, Hari Prasad Uprety; and Security Advisor to Bangladesh PM, Maj Gen Tarique Ahmed Siddique.
He also addressed the CEOs of local and global OEMs during a Round Table event in Bangalore and said that the Government of India is open to new ideas and is committed to fully harnessing the energy and capability of private sector partners in the area of defence production.
Raksha Mantri is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with the defence heads of four other countries – the UK, Italy, Zambia and Maldives.
An important official source said that in the bilateral meetings, there was talk of buying and selling defence goods. Apart from this, India has assured countries who took part today in the bilateral meetings that India will cooperate in their capacity building in the defence sector.
India also gave assurance that they will help them to strengthen the defence goods which are almost lacking in their countries.
The entire spectrum of defence cooperation was discussed during the meetings, with a focus on identifying avenues to expand mutually beneficial collaboration.
After his meeting with Nepal’s Defence Minister, Uprety, Singh tweeted, “Wonderful interaction with the Defence Minister of Nepal, Shri Hari Prasad Uprety on the sidelines of Aero India Show in Bengaluru. We look forward to continued cooperation to further deepen our close partnership and shared interests.”
