"World's confidence increasing towards India's defence equipment": PM Modi highlights BrahMos, Astra deal with Indonesia
New Delhi, July 26
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that global confidence in India's defence equipment and technology is increasing, highlighting the recent agreement between India and Indonesia on the BrahMos and Astra missile systems as a reflection of the country's growing defence capabilities.
In a post on X, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India's defence capabilities are gaining global recognition and highlighted the Prime Minister's remarks during the latest episode of his monthly radio programme 'Mann Ki Baat'.
"India's defence capabilities are earning global recognition. In #MannKiBaat today, PM @narendramodi spoke about how from strengthening indigenous defence manufacturing to expanding exports and deepening strategic partnerships, India continues to scale new milestones," Jaiswal said.
He added that the recent agreement signed during PM Modi's visit to Indonesia for the BrahMos and Astra missile systems "reflects the growing global trust in Indian defence technology."
Addressing the 136th episode of 'Mann Ki Baat', PM Modi said India is continuously achieving new milestones in defence production, defence exports and strategic cooperation with friendly nations.
"Friends, whether it is defence production, defence exports or political cooperation with friendly nations, Bharat is continuously scaling new heights. In the beginning of this month, I was in Indonesia, where a major agreement was signed for BrahMos and Astra missiles. The world's confidence is increasing towards Bharat's defence equipment and technology," PM Modi said.
During PM Modi's visit to Indonesia from July 6 to 8, India and Indonesia on July 7 signed some significant agreements, including for the supply of BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles and ASTRA beyond-visual-range air-to-air missiles, as the two countries reaffirmed their commitment towards a free, open, transparent, rules-based, peaceful, prosperous and inclusive Indo-Pacific region.
A joint statement released after talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said the two leaders highlighted that economic and trade cooperation remains a key pillar of the dynamic India-Indonesia ties and acknowledged the vast economic and developmental synergies between India's vision of 'Viksit Bharat 2047' and 'Indonesia Emas 2045'.
Recognising that India and Indonesia are maritime neighbours and strategic partners with robust defence cooperation, and recalling the adoption of the "Shared Vision of India-Indonesia on Maritime Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific" in 2018, both leaders reaffirmed their strong commitment to further enhance and broaden the defence and maritime partnership.
Both leaders agreed to further strengthen cooperation and enhance engagements in both traditional and emerging areas of defence cooperation, including regular defence dialogue, joint exercises, staff talks, joint research and co-production of new defence technologies, port calls, peacekeeping activities, information sharing, hydrography, capacity building, cadet training and exchanges, and defence industrial cooperation. They welcomed the elevation of defence cooperation, including through cooperation on the BrahMos Missile System, and the Air-to-Air Missile Cooperation Agreement.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Great to see our 'Make in India' initiatives paying off. But we need to ensure our own Armed Forces are fully equipped first before exporting so much. Quantity and quality both matter, and we still rely on some foreign tech for critical components. Hope we are building true self-reliance.
As someone who follows defence news closely, this is huge! BrahMos is a world-class supersonic missile and Astra BVR will give Indonesia's Su-30s a real edge. This is how we counter Chinese influence in Southeast Asia - through strategic partnerships and reliable tech. Well played, PM! 👏
Not just hardware, but the joint exercises and staff talks mentioned are equally important. Building trust with Indonesia, our maritime neighbour, is key for keeping the Indian Ocean safe and free. Good strategic move! ✈️🌊
The 'Viksit Bharat 2047' and 'Indonesia Emas 2045' vision alignment is such a smart diplomatic touch. Two emerging economies growing together. Hope this partnership brings job opportunities for our youth in defence manufacturing too! 🛠️
Good news no doubt, but let's not forget we signed similar deals with Philippines and Vietnam earlier. Need to see actual deliveries and production timelines. Also, Indonesia is a large market - are we giving them enough tech transfer? Otherwise they'll look to Russia or China again. Need aggressive follow-through.
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.