Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who is in Germany for a three-day visit, held bilateral talks with Germany’s Federal Minister of Defence Boris Pistorius in Berlin and discussed a range of bilateral security and defence issues, including priority areas for co-development and co-production of defence equipment, especially in the field of niche technologies.
According to a defence ministry release, the talks were aimed at further boosting the strategic defence partnership between India and Germany.
During the meeting, the Defence Industrial Cooperation Roadmap and Implementing Arrangement for Cooperation in UN Peacekeeping Training were signed and exchanged.
Calling his visit to Germany a "symbol of deep friendship, synergy and trust," the defence minister said the partnership between the two countries has witnessed considerable momentum in defence cooperation over the last few years, especially after Pistorius took over as defence minister of the country.
Singh said India is looking forward to the German Air Force’s participation in the next edition of Ex-TARANG SHAKTI, which will be held in India in September/October.
He noted that the India-EU Security & Defence Partnership marks a significant step in deepening the collective engagement.
"Both ministers agreed to leverage this framework, both bilaterally and in the wider European context for tangible outcomes that will strengthen regional stability, enhance joint capabilities, and reinforce the enduring Indo-German strategic alignment," the defence ministry said in a statement.
As the meeting fell on the occasion of the first anniversary of the Pahalgam attack, Singh said the menace of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be condemned, unequivocally, without exception or justification.
Although there were reports that there is a possibility that the two defence ministers may also finalise an inter-governmental agreement for supplying six stealth submarines to the Indian Navy, the defence ministry is yet to confirm if such an agreement was finalised.
