Defence minister Rajnath Singh and Belgian defence minister, trade minister Theo Francken
NEW DELHI: Defence minister Rajnath Singh Thursday made it clear to visiting Belgian defence minister and trade minister Theo Francken that for Indo-Belgian defence relations to flourish, his country should not have any defence pact on sensitive technology with Pakistan. The Belgian defence minister agreed to India’s request. “In response to defence minister Rajnath Singh asking the Belgian defence minister to keep India’s sensitivity in mind regarding transfer of sensitive technology to Pakistan during their meeting on Thursday morning, the Belgian minister responded that they are clear in their mind and they have chosen India without any doubt in mind,” a defence source told TOI. Francken also made it clear “till the time he is the defence minister of Belgium, there is no question of any cooperation with Pakistan”.The source also TOI that the Belgian minister’s reply is “similar to the response from the Italian defence minister (Guido Crosetto when he met Rajnath on April 30) and this shows that European countries have clearly chosen India (over Pakistan), vindicating India’s stance”. After the meeting, Rajnath said on X, “We reviewed the entire spectrum of defence relations and defence industrial cooperation between India and Belgium. Multiple MoUs and contracts under the defence industrial cooperation were also signed, towards leveraging Belgian technology together with Indian skill and scale.” India and Belgium inked a defence framework pact and separately, 10 pacts on collaboration between Belgian and Indian defence industries were signed, involving production of Belgian military hardware such as rockets in India.The Belgian side said that “there are also opportunities (to have cooperation with India) in weapon systems, ammunition, radar, electro-optical sensors, command and control, and counter-drone systems. These are precisely areas in which Belgian industry has particularly strong expertise.” “With this visit, we are reaping the benefits of what we have built over the past year. Every project that connects our technology with India’s growing defence industry strengthens both our security and economic position,” Francken said.At the India-Belgium Defence CEOs Roundtable and B2B meetings attended by MoS defence Sanjay Seth, Francken emphasised the strong potential for deeper industrial collaboration between the two sides to strengthen the defence forces through collective efforts. The Belgium defence minister underscored the growing strategic partnership between India and the European Union (EU), highlighting the robust dialogue structures developing across maritime security, information security and aerospace. He stated that these institutional frameworks have established India as a trusted partner for the EU. Commending the dynamism of Indian entrepreneurs, Francken stressed the need to bolster the two militaries in the evolving security environment through joint efforts. “United we stand, divided we fall,” he said.Seth urged Belgian defence manufacturers to leverage their technological expertise alongside India’s manufacturing scale for co-development and co-production of niche products for shared security and prosperity. Highlighting the strategic transformation of India’s defence manufacturing sector, MoS defence stated that the nation is decisively moving from import dependence to indigenous capability, trusted partnerships, and global competitiveness through initiatives such as Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Make-in-India. “This transformation is outward-facing. Strategic autonomy is best secured through credible, mutually beneficial international collaboration,” he said. Seth emphasised that India and Belgium can leverage their strengths and prioritise collaboration in areas including cyber security, AI-enabled unmanned aerial systems, underwater domain vehicles, and complex weapon systems.In a related development, global defence major Thales and Kalyani Strategic Systems Ltd (KSSL), a subsidiary of India’s Bharat Forge, have signed a “strategic alliance agreement” to explore collaboration on both unguided and laser-guided variants of Thales’ combat-proven 70-mm rocket systems to help enhance the operational readiness of the Indian armed forces, officials said on Thursday. Thales Belgium is a 100% subsidiary of Thales Group.The alliance provides a framework for technology transfer, local production and distribution for both unguided and laser-guided 70-mm rocket systems and associated equipment. The collaboration aims to develop a robust local supply chain and position India as a strategic manufacturing and export hub for advanced rocket systems. The first fully assembled rocket produced in India is targeted for early 2027.
