'We offer enhanced defence partnership to friendly foreign nations'

BENGALURU: Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said that India sees all nations as equal partners and the country does not believe in imposing external solutions to country's internal problems.

As part of the ongoing 'Aero India' event, India's biennial aerospace exhibition, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh hosted a Defence Ministers' Conclave, 'SPEED', at Taj Westend in Bengaluru Tuesday morning.

Speaking on occasion, Singh said, "India has always stood for a rules-based international order, in which the primordial instinct of the "might being right" is replaced by the civilisational concept of fairness, cooperation, respect and equality amongst all sovereign nations.

" Highlighting the need for cooperation between nations, Rajnath Singh said, "We wish to create symbiotic relationships where we can learn from each other."

He also pointed out terrorism illegal arms trade and drug smuggling as a security threat to the world.

"Today collective security has become sine-qua non for our development and prosperity. Terrorism, illegal arms trade and drug smuggling pose a significant security threat to the whole world Singh. To counter security threats, there is a need to devise new strategies for our current reality. India does not believe in dealing with such security issues in the old paternalistic or neo-colonial paradigms. We consider all nations as equal partners, Rajnath Singh said at the Aero India conclave," he added.

The conclave witnessed the participation of his counterparts from friendly foreign nations. The Aero India event was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday.

Security Advisor to Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Ahmed Siddique, Nepal Defence Minister Hari Prasad Uprety, Sri Lanka State State Minister of Defence Premitha Bandara Tennakoon and other country defence dignitaries also addressed the event.

Singh also said that the commingling and contest of various thoughts in India had made us a global ideation centre.

"India has never been a closed country and has been always open to new ideas and thoughts from all over the world. Our past openness continues to shape our present and future. Commingling and contesting various thoughts in India have made us a global ideation centre," the Union Minister said.

Singh further said that India supports the capacity building of its partner countries to "chart out" their own destiny, in accordance with their own genius.

"India offers an enhanced defence partnership to friendly foreign nations. We offer a partnership that is accommodative of the national priorities and capacities. We want to build with you, we want to create with you and we want to develop with you," Singh said, adding, "When we are procuring defence equipment from our valued partner nations, very often, they are sharing the technical know how, setting up manufacturing plants in India, and working with our local firms for various sub systems."

Aero India provides an opportunity for our Aviation and defence industry, including the aerospace industry, to showcase its products, technologies and capabilities to all the national decision makers, he added.

Earlier today morning Defence minister Rajnath Singh interacted and met with the CEOs of OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) from Defence and Aerospace sector in Bengaluru.

Chief Executive of General atomics Dr Vivek Lall, Senior Executive VP of Safran Alexander Ziegler, Business Development Boeing President Heidi grant, Vice President of Embraer Caetano Spuldaro Neto and President and CEO of Rafael Advanced Systems Major General Yoav Har Even were present in the meeting.