Strategic convergence:Italian Def Minister Crosetto makes maiden visit to India for high-level talks

Defence Minister Crosettos maiden visit to India underlines the desire of both nations to further expand existing cooperation and explore new areas of collaboration particularly under the industrial partnership domain, the ministry said.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will on Thursday hold talks with his Italian counterpart Guido Crosetto, focusing on ways to expand the bilateral defence cooperation. ''The ministers will discuss a range of issues covering defence cooperation between the two countries. They are also expected to share their views on regional and global issues in view of the evolving security landscape,'' the defence ministry said. Crosetto is visiting India weeks after India and the European Union firmed up a defence and strategic partnership. The defence cooperation between India and Italy gained momentum after Singh visited Rome in October, 2023. ''Defence Minister Crosetto's maiden visit to India underlines the desire of both nations to further expand existing cooperation and explore new areas of collaboration particularly under the industrial partnership domain,'' the ministry said. It said the signing of the India-EU defence and strategic partnership in January signalled increasing strategic convergence between the two sides and has provided further impetus to defence industrial cooperation in areas of mutual interest.