Official Visit to India of Florence Parly [fr]
Delhi-Nagpur-Mumbai, 27 - 28 October 2017
H.E. Ms Florence Parly, Minister for the Armed Forces of France undertook her maiden official visit to India, on 27th - 28th October 2017, to strengthen all aspects of France’s fast developing defence cooperation with India, its foremost Asian strategic partner. She was received by the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, and the Hon’ble Minister of Defence to prepare for the upcoming State visit of the President of the French Republic.
Minister Parly’s schedule began on Friday, 27th October with paying a floral tribute at Amar Jawan Jyoti. Thereafter, she received a guard of honour at the Ministry of Defence, and proceeded for bilateral consultations with her Indian counterpart, Smt Nirmala Sitharaman. Their talks ranged from defence operational cooperation, in particular on maritime security, joint exercises of the armed forces, counter-terrorism, to industrial and technological partnership under the Make in India initiative. They also reviewed progress made in major cooperation projects.
In the afternoon, the minister travelled to MIHAN SEZ, Nagpur, where she participated in the foundation stone-laying ceremony of Dassault Reliance Aerospace Limited (DRAL) by its joint promoters, Shri Anil Ambani, Chairman - Reliance Group, and Mr Eric Trappier, CMD - Dassault Aviation, in the presence of Shri Nitin Gadkari, Hon’ble Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Shipping, and Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, and Shri Devendra Fadnavis, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Maharashtra. DRAL will be part of the upcoming Aerospace Park in Nagpur and plans to develop an indigenous value-added supply chain, thereby building a strong base for the success of the Rafale programme under the Make in India initiative.
On Saturday, 28th October, Minister Parly called on Shri Narendra Modi, Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, for wide-ranging talks ahead of the State visit of President Emmanuel Macron. She also met Shri Ajit Doval, National Security Adviser.
The French Armed Forces Minister concluded her India trip in Mumbai, with visits at Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL) and the Western Naval Command. At MDL shipyard, she visited the yard where Scorpene submarines are being made in India with transfer of technology under the P75 project by MDL, India’s leading public sector shipbuilders, in collaboration with French shipbuilding major, Naval Group (formerly DCNS). She was also on board the INS Kalvari, the first of these six Scorpene submarines to have been delivered to the Indian Navy, an eloquent symbol of the close Indo-French strategic partnership.
At the Western Naval Command (WNC), Minister Parly was received by Vice Admiral Girish Luthra, Flag Officer Commanding in Chief, WNC, for discussions on Indo-French defence and security cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region. One of the most dynamic aspects of the Indo-French strategic partnership, this will be a key issue of President Macron’s State visit. She was also given a brief tour of WNC and view the stealth guided missile destroyer, INS Kochi.