India–France: Seven Decades of Strategic Partnership

India signed an agreement with Dassault Aviation to licence-produce the MD.450 Ouragan jet fighter, designated the Toofani by the Indian Air Force. Hindustan Aircraft Limited (later HAL) assembled the aircraft at Bangalore. This was among the first major military technology transfers to independent India and established a defence manufacturing relationship with France that would persist for seven decades. The IAF operated the Toofani until the early 1970s.

India acquired 110 Dassault Mystère IVA swept-wing fighters from France, with deliveries beginning in 1957. The aircraft were purchased as complete flyaway units, deepening India's operational familiarity with French aviation technology. The Mystère IVA served with distinction in both the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pakistani wars. Together with the Toofani, these two programmes embedded France as the primary Western supplier of combat aviation to the IAF at a formative period in India's air power development.

After evaluating competing offers from the United States (F-16), the Soviet Union (MiG-23), and France (Mirage 2000), India selected the Mirage 2000 for its air superiority requirements. The deal, signed in 1982 for 36 flyaway aircraft built in France, was strategically significant: India chose a Western aircraft during the Cold War while maintaining Soviet-origin equipment, underscoring its non-aligned posture. The Mirage 2000 has been widely reported as India's primary nuclear-capable delivery aircraft, though India has not officially confirmed which platforms carry nuclear weapons.

In May 1998, India conducted the Pokhran-II nuclear tests. Unlike the United States, which imposed sanctions, France declined to condemn the tests, citing India's security environment. In January 1998, ahead of the tests, President Jacques Chirac and Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had already agreed to elevate the relationship to a Strategic Partnership — the first such designation France extended to a non-European country. France's restrained response to Pokhran-II consolidated India's trust in France as a strategic partner.

India and France signed an upgrade contract in 2011 for India's Mirage 2000 fleet to the Mirage 2000I standard — a customised configuration incorporating a new radar, navigation systems, and precision strike capabilities developed by Dassault and Thales. The upgrade, executed with HAL participation, extended the Mirage 2000's service life into the 2020s. The aircraft's combat-proven role in the 1999 Kargil conflict — where it delivered laser-guided bombs in high-altitude operations — had reinforced India's confidence in French combat systems and made the upgrade a strategic priority.

India's Ministry of Defence signed a contract with DCNS (now Naval Group) of France and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) for the construction of six Scorpène-class conventional submarines under Project 75. Valued at approximately US$3.75 billion, the deal included technology transfer arrangements allowing MDL to build the submarines at Mumbai. The programme represented the most complex naval construction project India had undertaken and marked France's entry as a primary maritime defence partner.

India and France signed a civil nuclear cooperation agreement in September 2008, following the landmark US-India Civil Nuclear Agreement of 2007 that ended India's nuclear isolation. The agreement opened the way for French nuclear technology exports to India. EDF and AREVA proposed construction of up to six European Pressurised Reactors (EPR) at Jaitapur, Maharashtra, which would give India the world's largest nuclear power station by installed capacity (9,900 MW) when complete.

During President Nicolas Sarkozy's state visit to India in December 2009, France and India signed a memorandum of understanding for the Jaitapur nuclear power plant. Sarkozy attended the ceremony with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The MoU confirmed France as the technology provider for India's largest civil nuclear project and included commitments on fuel supply and liability arrangements — the latter a key Indian concern given domestic nuclear liability legislation then under active parliamentary consideration.

India issued a Request for Proposal for 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft (M-MRCA) in 2007. Following technical evaluations, the IAF shortlisted the Rafale and the Eurofighter Typhoon in 2011, then declared the Rafale the winner of the competition in January 2012 based on lowest life-cycle cost. Negotiations for 18 flyaway aircraft and 108 licence-built by HAL stalled over price escalation, transfer of technology terms, and maintenance guarantees, leading India to cancel the original 126-aircraft tender in 2015.

During Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Paris in April 2015, he announced that India would purchase 36 Rafale aircraft in flyaway condition directly from France, abandoning the stalled 126-aircraft tender. The announcement was made at a joint press conference with President François Hollande. The shift from a competitive tender with HAL production to a government-to-government deal for ready-to-fly aircraft was a significant departure from India's established procurement approach and became the subject of sustained domestic political controversy.

India and France signed the Inter-Governmental Agreement for the supply of 36 Rafale multi-role fighters in September 2016. The deal, valued at approximately Rs 59,000 crore (approximately €7.8 billion), was India's largest single defence procurement at the time. The agreement included India-specific enhancements (radar warning receivers, low-band jammers, infra-red search and track systems), 50 per cent offset obligations, and a five-year maintenance package. Deliveries commenced in July 2020 when the first five aircraft landed at Ambala Air Base.

Mazagon Dock delivered the first five Scorpène submarines to the Indian Navy between 2017 and 2023: INS Kalvari (2017), INS Khanderi (2019), INS Karanj (2021), INS Vela (2021), and INS Vagir (January 2023). Each vessel incorporates French DCNS technology for hull, propulsion, combat management, and weapon systems. The programme suffered delays of approximately five years from the original schedule, partly attributed to design integration challenges and supply chain issues at MDL.

Deliveries of all 36 Rafale aircraft under the 2016 IGA were completed in December 2022, ahead of the contracted schedule. The IAF formed two dedicated Rafale squadrons: No. 17 Squadron 'Golden Arrows' at Ambala and No. 101 Squadron 'Falcons of Chamb and Akhnoor' at Hashimara. The aircraft entered operational service with India-specific enhancements including integration with Indian weapons systems and the Hammer air-to-ground precision munition.

The Cabinet Committee on Security approved the purchase of 26 Rafale Marine aircraft for the Indian Navy in July 2023, at an estimated cost of approximately Rs 48,000 crore. The Rafale Marine is the carrier-capable variant and will operate from INS Vikrant, India's first domestically built aircraft carrier commissioned in 2022. The order marked the first time India procured a carrier-based combat aircraft from France and deepened the existing Rafale sustainment infrastructure.

The Tata-owned Air India announced orders for 250 Airbus aircraft in January 2023, comprising 210 A320-family narrowbody jets and 40 A350 widebodies, in a deal valued at over US$35 billion at list prices. The order, announced at the same time as a 220-aircraft Boeing deal, was among the largest commercial aviation purchases in Indian history and significantly expanded the Airbus–India relationship. The A320neo-family aircraft are powered by CFM LEAP or Pratt & Whitney GTF engines and will be maintained partly through the Air India engineering network.

Prime Minister Modi's state visit to Paris in July 2023, timed to coincide with Bastille Day (where Indian troops led the parade for the first time), produced a joint statement elevating the India–France relationship to a "Special Global Strategic Partnership." The designation signalled a deepening beyond standard strategic partnership frameworks and was accompanied by new commitments in space, cyber, clean energy, and defence industrial cooperation. Modi was the guest of honour at the Bastille Day celebrations.

INS Vagsheer, the sixth and final Scorpène submarine, was commissioned into the Indian Navy in January 2024, completing the Project 75 programme. The sixth vessel completed a programme that had run approximately eight years behind its original schedule. The delivery concluded a project that transferred significant submarine construction, integration, and maintenance expertise to Indian industry and provided the Indian Navy with a modern diesel-electric submarine fleet.

During President Macron's state visit to India in January 2024 — when he was chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations on 26 January — the two countries adopted the "Horizon 2047" strategic roadmap — a 25-year framework outlining cooperation across defence, space, civil nuclear, and digital domains. The roadmap set specific milestones for co-development and co-production, signalling an intent to shift the relationship from technology transfer toward joint industrial programmes. The visit also produced agreements on submarine cooperation under Project 75I and on advanced jet engine development.

France's SAFRAN agreed to collaborate with India's Gas Turbine Research Establishment (GTRE) and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on developing an advanced turbofan engine for India's Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA). The agreement, formalised in 2024, represented the first time France committed to joint engine development — as opposed to licence production or supply — for an Indian combat aircraft programme. Engine technology is among the most closely guarded in the aerospace sector; the deal was interpreted as a significant deepening of strategic trust.

The Jaitapur Nuclear Power Plant project continued commercial negotiations between EDF and India's Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) through 2025–2026. The project has faced delays since the initial MoU in 2009, stemming from disputes over reactor pricing, India's civil nuclear liability law (the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act 2010), and land acquisition challenges in Ratnagiri district. Despite repeated high-level political endorsements, financial close and construction start had not been achieved as of mid-2026, making Jaitapur a long-pending test case for the India–France civil nuclear pillar.