Page 5 - Defence Plan

Japan, UK and Italy join forces to develop new advanced fighter jet

The defence ministers of Japan, Britain and Italy on Thursday signed an agreement to establish a joint organisation to develop a new advanced jet fighter, as the countries push to bolster their cooperation in the face of growing threats from China, Russia and North Korea. The three countries had agreed last year to merge earlier individual plans for Japan's Mitsubishi F-X to succeed the retiring F-2s developed with the United States and Britain's Tempest to produce the new combat aircraft for deployment in 2035. Japan, which is rapidly building up its military, hopes to have greater capability to counter China's rising assertiveness and allow Britain a bigger presence in the Indo-Pacific region. Defense Minister Minoru Kihara at a joint news conference with his British and Italian counterparts, Grant Shapps and Guido Crosett, said that co-developing a high performance fighter aircraft is indispensable to securing air superiority and enabling effective deterrence at a time Japan ..

India, Australia set to hold '2+2' ministerial dialogue on November 20

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles are set to visit India to take part in the two-plus-two ministerial dialogue on Monday that is likely to focus on further shoring up strategic ties between the two countries, people familiar with the matter said. It is learnt that Marles, who is also Australia's deputy prime minister, and Wong may watch the Cricket World Cup final between India and Australia in Ahmedabad on Sunday. There is no official announcement on the '2+2' dialogue or the planned visit to India by Wong and Marles. The people cited above said the two sides are expected to focus extensively on further ramping up the overall defence and security ties and boost strategic cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region in the "2+2" ministerial dialogue. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will lead the Indian delegation at the talks. Both Australia and India are part of the Quad or Quadrilateral coalition that i

Rajnath Singh discusses defence ties, Indo-Pacific with UK counterpart

Singh also congratulated Shapps on his appointment as the Secretary of State for Defence

Jaishankar meets Kyrgyzstan Prez, discusses ways to boost bilateral ties

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar called on President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Zhaparov on Wednesday and discussed ways to boost bilateral cooperation in banking, defense and energy sectors. Jaishankar was accorded a warm welcome here on Wednesday as he arrived in Kyrgyzstan on a two-day visit during which he will meet the country's leadership and attend a conclave of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). "Delighted to call on President Sadyr Zhaparov of Kyrgyz Republic. Conveyed the personal greetings of PM @narendramodi. Discussed cooperation in banking, energy, health and pharma, defense, agriculture and investments," he posted on X. The minister conveyed India's support to Kyrgyzstan for the successful Presidency of the SCO Council of Heads of Government. Kyrgyzstan is hosting the SCO Council of Heads of Government (CHG) meeting in its capacity as the current chair of the grouping. Jaishankar also met his counterpart from Kyrgyzstan Zheenbek Kulubaev and discussed a ran

Senior officials of India, France explore ways to boost defence ties

Senior officials of India and France held a two-day military dialogue with a focus on boosting overall defence cooperation. The 21st edition of India-France Military Sub Committee (MSC) meeting was held on October 16 and 17 at the Air Force station in the national capital. India-France MSC is a forum established to advance defence cooperation through regular talks at strategic and operational levels. "The meeting was conducted in a friendly, warm and cordial atmosphere," the defence ministry said. "The discussions focussed on new initiatives under the ambit of existing bilateral defence cooperation mechanism and strengthening ongoing defence engagements," it said. The defence and strategic ties between India and France have been on an upswing in the last few years. In July, India and France announced a raft of ground-breaking defence cooperation projects including the joint development of jet and helicopter engines and construction of three Scorpene submarines for the Indian Navy

India, UK hold first '2+2' foreign & defence dialogue to boost cooperation

The inaugural India-UK '2+2' foreign and defence dialogue on Monday saw the two sides focusing on ways to boost cooperation in a range of key areas such as trade and investment, defence, critical technologies, civil aviation, health and energy. At the senior official-level dialogue, the two sides also discussed international developments including in the Indo-Pacific region and considered the possibility of enhancing anti-terror collaboration, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). The 2+2 dialogue at senior official level is a mechanism to discuss and review all aspects of India-UK comprehensive strategic partnership. The dialogue took place as the two sides are exploring the possibility of a visit to India by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak later this month. The MEA said the two sides discussed "possibilities for further collaboration particularly in areas of trade and investment, defence, critical and emerging technologies, civil aviation, health, energy, cultur

Vice Admiral reviews operational, combat readiness of Western Naval Command

Vice Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Western Naval Command, embarked the Western Fleet for a review of the operational and combat readiness of the 'Sword Arm of Indian Navy', an official said on Sunday. In a statement, the Navy said the C-in-C witnessed anti-submarine, anti-aircraft and surface drills as well as live firings by multiple platforms in a realistic multi-threat scenario, including air operations on board aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya under command of Rear Admiral Vineet McCarty, Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet (FOCWF). The C-in-C also embarked the newly inducted MH60R helicopter and expressed satisfaction with efforts made for early fleet integration, it said. He complimented the Western Fleet for readiness to accomplish tasks and missions across the spectrum of operations as envisaged by the Navy towards securing the maritime interests of India, the release added.

Taiwan launches its first domestically made submarine for testing

Taiwan's president launched the island's first domestically made submarine for testing Thursday at a port in Kaohsiung. The submarine, if successful in its tests, will be a major breakthrough for Taiwan in shipbuilding and design. In the past, a domestic made submarine was considered impossible, but today a submarine designed and built by our countrymen is in front of you, said President Tsai Ing-wen at the launch ceremony. It is the concrete realization of our resolution to protect" Taiwan. The process was torturous, said Cheng Wen-lon, head of Taiwan's CSBC Corporation, which led the constructions of the submarine. But its completion marks an important milestone in Taiwan's strategy of adopting asymmetric warfare. Although we have worked quietly the past several years, it doesn't mean the process was very smooth," he said at the ceremony held in CSBC's shipyard. After years of construction and design, the prototype will begin a test in the harbor before being tested in the ...

Going back in time: Process to revive ancient shipbuilding begins tomorrow

The Ministry of Culture has fully funded this project, while the Ministry of Shipping and Ministry of External Affairs will support the project to ensure seamless execution of the international voyage

8th India-Australia Defence Policy Talks held in Canberra on July 24-25

India and Australia share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership from June 2020, and defence is a key pillar of this partnership

164 'positive indigenisation list' items indigenised: Defence ministry

These 164 items, which the MoD estimates carry an import substitution value of Rs 814 crore, were scheduled to be indigenised by December 2022

Indian space tech firm designs chip to track school buses, weapons systems

A Bengaluru-based space technology company has unveiled an indigenously designed NavIC chip which can use India's own navigation satellite system to provide positioning services that have applications in civilian and defence sectors. The 12-nanometre chip can be fitted into a mobile phone or any handheld device and can receive signals from the Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) or the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), the Global Positioning System of the US and the GLONASS constellation of Russia. Designed by the IIT-Kharagpur incubated Elena Geo Systems, the chip was on Thursday presented to Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan in the presence of Samir V Kamat, chairman of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), and Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari. Elena Geo Systems has entered into an agreement with a Taiwan-based chip manufacturer to ensure a steady supply of the NavIC chip. "We directly control the factory. ...

India, Sri Lanka review security cooperation at annual defence dialogue

Top defence officials of India and Sri Lanka have held the seventh edition of their annual dialogue during which the two sides reviewed the bilateral defence and security cooperation and identified new avenues for engagement. The two-day meeting of the 7th edition of the Annual Defence Dialogue (ADD) between India and Sri Lanka, which began in New Delhi on Thursday was chaired by Defence Secretary Giridhar Armane and his Sri Lankan counterpart General Kamal Gunaratne. During the meeting which ended on Saturday, the two sides reviewed the defence and security cooperation, the Indian High Commission said here. Various ongoing defence cooperation initiatives were jointly reviewed and new avenues for engagement were identified during the ADD, it said. Sri Lanka's delegation included Air Marshal SK Pathirana, Commander of Sri Lanka Air Force along with senior officers from the Sri Lanka Army and the Navy. The Indian delegation included officials from the Ministry of Defence, Headquarte

Defence Minister launches 'iDEX Investor Hub', Rs 200 cr already pledged

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday launched the 'iDEX Investor Hub' (iIH), under which more than Rs 200 crores had already been pledged by leading Indian investors. He also launched the ninth edition of 'Defence India Startup Challenges (DISC 9)' on "Cybersecurity" during the annual defence innovation event 'Manthan' as part of the Aero India 2023 here. Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) is the flagship initiative of the Department of Defence Production to encourage start-ups and other such entities engaged in defence innovation. The iDEX Investor Hub' aims to accelerate investment in the Defence sector and give investors a unified view of opportunities and innovations, officials said. More than Rs 200 crore had already been pledged under iIH by leading Indian investors, an official statement said. 'DISC 9' launched on Wednesday is the first collaboration of iDEX with the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (i4C) division of the Ministry of Home Affairs. These

Biggest defence importer for decades now exports to 75 countries: PM Modi

Underlining the potential of India's defence sector PM Narendra Modi on Monday said the country which was the biggest defence importer for decades now exports defence equipment to 75 countries.

Info war can be a threat to stability: Defence minister Rajnath Singh

Adds successive govts have failed to create national security strategy

Indian Navy to get a new ensign: What is changing and why is it important?

On September 2, PM Modi will unveil a new ensign of the Indian Navy that will not include the St George's Cross

S Korea, US to hold talks on alliance, deterrence against evolving N Korea

The defence chiefs of South Korea and the US will hold talks in Washington DC on Friday (July 29) to discuss security on the Korean Peninsula and deterrence against evolving North Korean threats

South Korea protests against Japan's claims to Dokdo in defense white paper

The South Korean government has condemned Japan on Friday for laying repeated claim to the easternmost islets of Dokdo in its annual defence white paper.

Self-reliance in defence forces important for India of 21st century: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday addressed a seminar titled 'Swavlamban' organised by the Naval Innovation and Indigenisation Organisation (NIIO) wherein he underlined India's goal