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Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday held wide-ranging talks with his Italian counterpart Guido Crosetto, focusing on defence cooperation, regional security and the evolving situation in West Asia.
The two leaders underlined that the India–Italy strategic partnership rests on shared principles of peace, stability, freedom and mutual respect. Crosetto’s visit comes weeks after India and the European Union strengthened their broader strategic and defence engagement.
According to officials, the discussions covered a spectrum of regional and global issues, with particular attention to West Asia. Both sides also explored ways to expand defence industrial collaboration, aligning India’s Atmanirbhar Bharat push with Italy’s defence cooperation initiatives.
A key outcome of the meeting was the exchange of a Bilateral Military Cooperation Plan for 2026–27, which will guide structured engagements between the armed forces of the two countries.
Maritime cooperation figured prominently in the talks, with both sides highlighting their shared outlook as historic seafaring nations. Areas of convergence include information-sharing through the Information Fusion Centre – Indian Ocean Region and broader coordination on maritime security.
India and Italy have steadily expanded defence ties in recent years, encompassing institutional dialogue, service-level exchanges, training, naval exercises, port calls and defence trade. The relationship received a boost after Singh visited Italy in 2023, when the two sides signed a defence cooperation agreement.
Meanwhile, the Indian Coast Guard hosted an Italian delegation, including senior Fincantieri representatives, at its headquarters in New Delhi. The delegation met Director General Paramesh Sivamani to discuss opportunities for industrial collaboration.
Talks centred on co-development and indigenous production of niche technologies, such as dynamic positioning systems, advanced thrusters, AI-enabled decision-support tools, counter-unmanned aerial systems, and green propulsion solutions. Officials said the interaction reflected a shared intent to deepen industrial partnerships and strengthen maritime capability, with both sides agreeing to maintain structured engagement going forward.
Team BharatShakti
