In his talks with Pistorius, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stressed that India and Germany could build a "more symbiotic" defence relationship based on shared goals and complementarity of strength and invited German investments in defence corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Pistorius arrived in Delhi on Monday on a four-day visit to India. It is the first visit of a German defence minister to India since 2015. The defence ministry said the Indian defence industry could participate in the supply chains of the German defence industry and add value to the ecosystem, besides contributing to supply chain resilience.
The officials said India's plan to procure six stealth conventional submarines at a cost of around Rs 43,000 crore figured in the talks and Pistorius showed Germany's interest in the project. One of the contenders of the contract is Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS).
In June 2021, the defence ministry cleared the mega project to domestically build six conventional submarines for the Indian Navy. The submarines will be built under the much-talked-about strategic partnership model that allows domestic defence manufacturers to join hands with leading foreign defence majors to produce high-end military platforms to reduce import dependence.
Before travelling to India from Indonesia, Pistorius told German's state-owned broadcaster DW that India's continuing reliance on Russian weapons is not in Germany's interest. The defence ministry said both the ministers reviewed the ongoing bilateral defence cooperation activities and explored ways to enhance the collaboration, particularly the defence industrial partnership.
"The defence minister highlighted the opportunities that have opened up in the defence production sector, including the possibilities for German investments in the two defence industrial corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu," it said. "The Indian defence industry could participate in the supply chains of the German defence industry and add value to the ecosystem, besides contributing to supply chain resilience," it said.
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