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PARIS (PPA) — France and India are expected to hold series of meetings and exercises ranging from counter-terrorism to nuclear, biological and chemical warfare during next few days.
India has dispatched at least three delegations representing India’s Interior Ministry (Home Affairs), National Investigation Agency (NIA) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to hold meetings with French officials as part of strategic cooperation under the banner of Indo-French strategic partnership and the bilateral counter-terrorism cooperation plan.
Another Indian delegation is also arriving to meet with more sensitive French agencies and officials from Directorate General for Civil Security and Crisis Management (DGSCGC), and National Gendarmerie’s Armoured Division (GBGN).
The Indian delegation is due to hold talks with French officials and will attend an interministerial exercise in the department of Yvelines, sponsored by the Paris Defence and Security Zone Prefecture, in liaison with the National Civil and Military Education and Training Centre for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN).
The Indian teams are also expected to meet French firms that produce materials and equipment useful for crisis management to overcome threats arising from Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear attacks. India is exerting pressures on France to cut off all defence and security cooperation with Pakistan if it was interested to sell multi-billion dollar defence products to India. India has already bought 36 Rafale fighter jets from France at a cost of €7.87 billion. But India plans to buy about 114 fighter jets.
India is also blackmailing France that should it fail to meet India’s demands, India may decide to buy 114 Swedish Gripen jet fighters instead of French Rafale aircraft. Gripen is half of the price of French Rafale fighters plus Swedish is offering full technology transfer to India.
India pressurizes Sweden not to sell defence products to Pakistan
SAAB India’s chairman and managing director (CMD) Ola Rignell was also quoted today by an Indian newspaper as saying that in June this year, Indian Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa had expressed his displeasure with the Swedish defence officials for supplying Pakistan with early warning systems and also offering Gripen fighters to India. SAAB Indian MD Mr Ola Rignell was also quoted as saying that SAAB (Sweden) is not selling any new products to Pakistan.
– PPA