With Rajnath in Rome, India, Italy ink defence pacts

The defence cooperation agreement that New Delhi and Rome signed will promote bilateral cooperation in security and defence policy, R&D, education in the military field, maritime domain awareness and sharing of defence information and industrial cooperation.

Two years after the Defence Ministry lifted its ban on Italian arms major Leonardo, India and Italy have signed an “agreement of cooperation” in defence, which, among other things seeks to promote “co-development, co-production and setting up of joint ventures” between Indian and Italian companies.

The bilateral pact was signed soon after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held talks with Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto in Rome on the first leg of his visit to Italy and France.

Singh on Tuesday met the top-brass of 24 Italian defence companies including Leonardo, Fincantieri, Elettronica, Beretta, AIAD and Pasquali and heard proposals on strengthening defence relations between the two countries. The minister appraised them of the two defence industrial corridors and assured support.

The defence cooperation agreement that New Delhi and Rome signed a day before will promote bilateral cooperation in security and defence policy, R&D, education in the military field, maritime domain awareness and sharing of defence information and industrial cooperation.

The industrial cooperation includes co-development, co-production & setting up of joint ventures.

The two ministers discussed the complementary capacities of India and Italy in defence and the possibilities of joint development. Singh also suggested a link between Indian start-ups with Italian military companies.

In the last decade, the bilateral relations between India and Italy nosedived following the marine controversy. It deteriorated further when the Defence Ministry blacklisted Leonardo – the parent firm of AgustaWestland in the VVIP helicopter controversy. The blacklisting jeopardised several critical Indian projects.

The ban was withdrawn in November 2021 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a meeting with then-Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Rome.

This was followed by multiple top-level meetings, including one between Singh and Italian Under Secretary of Defence Matteo Perego di Cremnago on the sidelines of Aero India in Bengaluru in March. Collaborations with Italian majors are necessary to arm Indian submarines and supply critical electronics and weapons to the armed forces.

Singh, accompanied by Cremnago, and Indian Ambassador to Italy Neena Malhotra, also visited Montone in Perugia province where he paid tributes at a Memorial recently built for Naik Yaswant Ghadge and other Indian soldiers who fought in the Italian Campaign in World War II.

Over 50,000 soldiers from the British Indian Army participated in the Italian Campaign, of whom over 5,700 lost their lives and are commemorated in various cemeteries across Italy.