An inter-governmental agreement between India and Germany for supplying six stealth submarines to the Indian Navy is likely to be discussed during the upcoming three-day visit of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Germany, beginning Tuesday.
German defence major ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL) were reportedly holding price negotiations with the defence ministry for an €5 billion deal to supply six stealth submarines to the Indian Navy.
According to the defence ministry, the visit is aimed at further strengthening the strategic defence partnership between the two countries. The visit will also offer the two countries an opportunity to review the ongoing defence cooperation initiatives and identify new areas for collaboration between the defence industries of India and Germany.
During his visit, Singh is scheduled to hold bilateral talks with his German counterpart, Boris Pistorius, and other senior leaders of the government.
"Discussions will focus on enhancing defence industrial collaboration, strengthening military-to-military engagements, and exploring opportunities in emerging domains such as cyber security, artificial intelligence, and drones," the defence ministry stated in a release.
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A Defence Industrial Cooperation Roadmap and Implementing Arrangement for Cooperation in UN Peacekeeping Operations Training are likely to be signed during the visit.
The last visit by an Indian defence minister to Germany was by Nirmala Sitharaman in February 2019. Meanwhile, Pistorius had visited India in June 2023 and held extensive talks with Singh.
In January, during the visit of Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz to India, the two countries had reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening defence and security cooperation.
The two sides had expressed satisfaction at ongoing cooperation between the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAR) for the Eurodrone MALE UAV programme, which will enable India to collaborate and harness advanced military technology and strengthen its strategic and defence ties with Europe.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Merz had then hailed the continuing cooperation in submarines, obstacle avoidance system for helicopters and Counter Unmanned Aerial Systems (C-UAS).
—with inputs from PTI
