India, UK discuss deeper military ties, advancing defence capability

Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh co-chaired the 24th India-UK Defence Consultative Group Meet with his UK counterpart, David Williams, in London on Wednesday. The discussions focused on strengthening military cooperation between India and the UK and advancing defence capability collaboration.

David Williams welcomed Rajesh Kumar Singh to London for the 24th UK-India Defence Consultative Group. Commodore Chris Saunders, the Defence Advisor at the UK High Commission in India, shared the details regarding the meeting on X.

In a post on X, Commodore Saunders stated, "@DefenceHQ Permanent Secretary, David Williams CB, welcomed Indian Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh to London for the 24th UK-India Defence Consultative Group. Discussions focused on strengthening military cooperation and advancing defence capability collaboration."

 

According to the Ministry of Defence, the discussions focused on enhancing defence industry collaboration and boosting the Make in India initiative.

In a post on X, the Directorate of Public Relations, Ministry of Defence, stated, "Defence Secy Shri Rajesh Kumar Singh co-chaired the 24th India-UK Defence Consultative Group meet with his UK counterpart David Williams in London. Both sides reviewed defence ties, focusing on enhancing defence industry collaboration & boosting the #MakeInIndia initiative, especially in niche tech."

 

Earlier on April 9, the 13th Ministerial meeting of the India-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue (13th EFD) was held in London. The Indian delegation, led by Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman, held high-level discussions with the UK delegation led by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves. During the 13th EFD, the UK announced 400 million euros in export and investment deals with India.

In a post on X, the UK Government's economic and finance ministry wrote, "We've announced £400m in export and investment deals with India, boosting our tech and financial sectors. India, our 11th largest trading partner, is set to become the world's third-largest economy by 2028. These deals will drive growth as part of our Plan for Change."

 

Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to continue collaboration in financial services sector, FinTech and Digital economy and between the respective regulatory bodies; collaboration at bilateral and multilateral fora to address mutual and global economic issues including mobilising affordable finance and investment for low carbon economic growth, taxation matters and illicit financial flows, according to Ministry of Finance press release.