military
OEM
RELATIONSHIP BOOSTER: THE LONG AWAITED RAFALE INDUCTION IN THE INDIAN AIR FORCE WILL TAKE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TWO (THE COMPANY AND THE USER) TO NEXT LEVELS
A LONG JOURNEY The relationship that the Indian Air Force has forged with Dassault Aviation over the last six decades will facilitate the fulfilment of needs of the IAF in the future
Photograph: Dassault Aviation
By Air Marshal (Retd) B.K. Pandey
T
The history of relationship between India and France dates back nearly 400 years to the days of the Mughal Empire. Later on in the 18th century, France was actively involved militarily in several military campaigns in South India generally fighting the British. Apart from Great Britain, France was one of the major European nations to establish colonies in India. On India gaining independence in 1947, diplomatic relations between the two nations were formally established and over the years, France and India have had close and friendly relations. The two nations have even entered into a strategic partnership
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in 1998 leading to exchanges in strategic areas such as defence, nuclear energy and space. France was one of the few nations that did not condemn India’s nuclear tests in 1998 and has supported India’s bid for permanent membership of the UN Security Council as well as G-8. France is one of the largest suppliers of nuclear fuel to India and has entered into an agreement for civil nuclear cooperation. Early Years of Partnership in Military Aviation While the two nations built up enduring relationships over
ISSUE 5 • 2014
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