India, Belgium hold defence talks, agree to deepen ties

India and Belgium reviewed the entire spectrum of their bilateral defence ties here on Thursday during talks between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his counterpart Theo Francken.

Giving details, the defence ministry said the two leaders agreed to expand relations through defence cooperation dialogue, high-level visits, training and capacity building.

Both leaders also discussed issues of regional peace and security and acknowledged the need for maritime security collaboration in the Indo-Pacific. They reiterated that the partnership between India and Belgium is based on shared values of mutual trust and respect. Rajnath Singh said the two countries have the potential to further expand their partnership amid a period of “great geopolitical and economic turmoil” globally.

“The world is witnessing a time of great geopolitical and economic turmoil. Most of it is not our doing, but we have to handle the challenges. In such situations, meeting a friend and partner like you provides a useful opportunity to exchange views and perspectives,” he said. The Defence Minister underlined that the recently held India-Belgium Strategic Dialogue had provided a framework for taking the bilateral partnership forward, including in the areas of defence and security.

Rajnath Singh noted that there was significant potential to further expand defence cooperation between the two countries, particularly by strengthening engagement between their defence industries.  He also expressed optimism that the discussions during the meeting would provide strategic direction to bilateral defence engagements.

The meeting was conducted on the sidelines of a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Belgium Bart De Wever.