French Minister Parly calls on PM Modi, briefs about defence cooperation

French Minister for the Armed Forces Florence Parly met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday and briefed him about the developments in bilateral defence cooperation.

The two leaders also discussed regional and global issues of mutual interest.

Prime Minister Modi said that defence cooperation is one of the key pillars of the Strategic partnership between India and France and called for greater cooperation in the 'Make in India' framework in defence manufacturing and joint research and development.

Yesterday, Florence Parly met Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and decided that India and France will jointly conduct the naval exercise 'Varuna' next year.

India and France also vowed to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation as a key pillar of the strategic partnership.

The Prime Minister said that he looks forward to receiving French President Emmanuel Macron in India at his earliest convenience.