India and France have signed a new technical agreement to deepen defence research and development collaboration, marking a significant step in their longstanding strategic partnership.

The agreement, signed at DRDO Bhawan in New Delhi by DRDO Chairman Dr Samir V Kamat and France’s National Armaments Director Lt Gen Gael Diaz de Tuesta, provides a formal framework for joint research, knowledge sharing, training, and collaborative innovation in defence technology.

The agreement goes beyond specific projects and aims to establish a broad collaboration enabling joint research, intellectual property sharing, technology transfer, and training programmes. Key areas of cooperation include aeronautical platforms, unmanned vehicles, advanced materials for defence, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, space technologies, navigation, advanced propulsion, sensors, quantum technologies, and underwater technologies.

Both countries plan to hold workshops, seminars, and other skill-enhancing exchanges to boost defence R&D expertise.

This partnership builds on decades of India-France strategic defence ties, with France supplying key platforms to India such as the Rafale fighter aircraft, Scorpene submarines, and various missiles. 

Looking ahead, a major future initiative involves the co-development of next-generation fighter jet engines, notably a ₹61,000 crore project with French aerospace firm Safran to develop a powerful 120kN thrust engine to power India’s Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) and other future military aircraft.

The project includes full technology transfer and local manufacturing, significantly advancing India’s self-reliance in critical aerospace propulsion technology.

The collaboration also aligns with broader bilateral cooperation expanding into the digital sphere, cybersecurity, advanced computing, climate change, and sustainable development, with 2026 being planned as the 'India-France Year of Innovation.' The relationship maintains a strong Indo-Pacific strategic dimension, enhancing regional security and technological innovation.

This new defence R&D framework represents a renewed commitment to merging expertise, resources, and innovation capabilities to meet future defence challenges collaboratively, reinforcing the robust and evolving India-France strategic partnership initially formalised in 1998 and continuously growing across various fields.​

Agencies