Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will co-chair the 6th India-France Annual Defence Dialogue with his French counterpart, Catherine Vautrin, in Bengaluru on Tuesday. The meeting will review the entire spectrum of bilateral defence cooperation, with a focus on expanding industrial collaboration. The Defence Ministry stated that during the meeting, a defence cooperation agreement is expected to be renewed for another 10 years, with a Memorandum of Understanding on a joint venture for the manufacture of HAMMER missiles likely to be signed. An announcement is also expected regarding the reciprocal deployment of officers at Indian Army and French Land Forces establishments. The two Ministers are also expected to witness the virtual inauguration of the H125 Light Utility Helicopter Final Assembly by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron at Vemagal, Karnataka.
This would be Ms. Catherine Vautrin's maiden visit to India, taking office as the French Defence Minister in October 2025. The India-France Annual Defence Dialogue is a structured, ministerial-level bilateral meeting to review and guide defence and security cooperation. The 5th edition of the meeting was held in France from 11th to 13th October 2023.