Indian and French officials were unable to finalize negotiations on a pact in time for their joint statement, as reported by The Indian Express. The negotiations involved details on timelines and confidential specifications. The final joint statement, following talks between Prime Minister and President Emmanuel Macron in Paris, did not mention the pact on buying submarines. The negotiators attempted to close the deals in time for inclusion in the document, but were unsuccessful. A draft version with references to the submarines and engine was mistakenly uploaded on the Ministry of External Affairs website. This error indicated that negotiations were ongoing but not completed. Officials stated that such draft texts are routine and efforts are made to finalize negotiations, but sometimes they are excluded from the final statement. The document titled ‘Horizon 2047: 25th Anniversary of the India-France Strategic Partnership’ now includes a statement on the success of the Scorpene submarine construction program. The final joint statement also highlights cooperation in military aviation and defense technologies between India and France. Talks are ongoing with firms like Safran SA for developing aircraft engines for the AMCA Mk II. INS Vagir, the Navy’s fifth Scorpene class submarine, was commissioned in January.
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