‘Very big step’: India, Belgium aim to seal defence cooperation pact this year

‘Very big step’: India, Belgium aim to seal defence cooperation pact this year

Very big step’: India, Belgium aim to seal defence cooperation pact this year ByRezaul H Laskar Mar 04, 2025 07:20 PM IST Share Via Copy Link Belgian defence minister Theo Francken said PM Modi asked them to make the task force in New Delhi and in Brussels and to conclude the pact before the yearend

NEW DELHI: India and Belgium are hoping to finalise a defence agreement within the year to bolster cooperation between their armed forces and to enhance defence industrial collaboration, Belgian defence minister Theo Francken said on Tuesday.

Belgian defence minister Theo Francken and foreign minister Maxime Prévot were part of a Belgian delegation led by Princess Astrid that met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday. (X/BelgiuminIndia)

Such an agreement will be a “very big step” towards facilitating structural cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries and creating a framework for collaboration between defence industries, Francken told a media briefing, speaking alongside Belgian foreign minister Maxime Prévot.

The two ministers were part of a Belgian delegation led by Princess Astrid that met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday. Francken said Modi suggested the two sides form a task force for finalising the defence agreement as soon as possible.

“Your prime minister asked us to make the task force here in New Delhi and in Brussels and to conclude the agreement before the end of the year,” Francken said. Belgium will soon appoint a defence attache at its embassy in New Delhi to act as a single point of contact for the Indian military and defence industry, he said.

Both countries need to build their defence capabilities and learn from each other “to make good military equipment [and] to stand strong”, Francken said. “Peace through strength – I think that is the new message we want to give,” he added.

Prévot referred to the geopolitical churn created by the policies of the US administration and emphasised the need for stronger ties between the two countries. “Times are changing and we need to absolutely reinforce ties between Belgium and a powerful democracy like India,” he said.

Princess Astrid’s visit to India with the Belgian Economic Mission, a delegation with representatives of 200 companies, reflects the importance of the partnership with India, Prévot said. Belgium’s SMEs can provide services and add value to India’s supply chains, especially in defence, life sciences, space, bio-tech and hi-tech.

Francken said a Belgian defence firm John Cockerill Defence is participating in the Indian Army’s tender to acquire nearly 300 light tanks to be used in high-altitude terrain along the frontier with China. The firm has a good reputation and is optimistic about the outcome of the contract, he said.

John Cockerill Defence has collaborated with Mumbai-based Larsen & Toubro (L&T) for the Zorawar light tank programme. The firm provided turrets equipped with a 105 mm gun. It is also establishing a local joint venture to assemble and deliver the turrets.

Prévot said the Belgian side didn’t speak specifically about the situation between the US and Ukraine with Modi, though the prime minister is aware of the “concerns of Europe and of Belgium regarding the issue we are facing in Europe”.

“We are seeing that times are complicated, times are changing…The US has already been a strong ally of Belgium and they will remain a strong ally of Belgium, that’s clear,” Prévot said.

“But we also…have to be clear headed, the situation is not the same that it was a couple of weeks ago. We need to be flexible and united – that’s the message that we disseminated in the European Union (EU). It means that we need to develop our own strategic autonomy, certainly regarding the defence sector,” he said.

Prévot emphasised that Belgium will stand by Ukraine. “We are with the Ukrainian people. There is an aggressor, there is a victim, no doubt about that. And it is not acceptable that some powers of the world try to put those two countries on the same footing,” he said.

While noting that he wouldn’t “impose a view on India”, Prévot added that “any support for Ukraine will be appreciated”. Francken said any peace deal for Ukraine has to be a “deal where the Ukrainian people are standing in front, [are] supporting that peace deal and its conditions, and where Europe is also involved because Ukraine is a European country”.

India has said a solution to the Ukraine conflict can’t be found on the battlefield and urged the warring parties to return to the path of dialogue and diplomacy to achieve a lasting peace.