Rajnath Singh Invites German Defence Firms to Co-Create Under 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'

Making a strong pitch for enhanced collaborations between the defence industrial ecosystems of India and Germany, Defence Minister said that 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' is not merely a procurement programme; it is an invitation to co-create, co-develop, and co-innovate.

Addressing the German Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence and Security, Rajnath Singh asserted that the world today is faced with new security threats, and the technological transformation has made the situation highly complex and intricately connected.

"A new approach with the willingness to adapt to the changing environment is the need of the hour," he said.

"We recognise the established strengths of Germany's leading industrial enterprises, while also admiring the vigour and dynamism of the renowned German Mittelstand (small and medium-sized companies) in advanced and emerging technologies," he noted.

In India too, "our start-ups and enterprising private companies are rapidly enhancing and complementing the capabilities of our larger and established defence enterprises. This is an area where India and Germany naturally complement each other, and our partnership can deepen further," said Rajnath Singh.

To deal with modern-day global challenges, Rajnath Singh underscored the need for coordinated responses and trusted strategic partnerships.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz have placed strong emphasis on advancing this strategic partnership. We also see a clear convergence of views at the European Union level, reflected in the growing momentum to engage with India, including through the India-EU Defence and Strategic Partnership," he stressed.

India and Germany are not only strategic partners, but also consequential voices in shaping the global discourse of the present times.

"We are established democracies bound by shared values, and dynamic economies driven by resilience, innovation, and a determined industrial spirit. When the chronicles of this era are penned, the India-Germany partnership will stand as a paragon of diplomacy, crafted not in response to crisis, but through the steady resolve of two mature democracies choosing to walk this path together," he stated.

Upon his arrival, Rajnath Singh was welcomed at the Berlin Airport with military honours. He was flown in a Special German Air Force aircraft, escorted by fighter jets, during his flight from Munich to Berlin.

- IANS