India and South Korea sign key agreements covering cyber security, military training and peacekeeping cooperation….reports Asian Lite News
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held wide ranging talks with South Korean Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back in Seoul on May 20, with both sides agreeing to deepen cooperation in defence manufacturing, emerging technologies and regional security.
According to India’s Ministry of Defence, the two ministers reviewed the full spectrum of bilateral defence ties and explored ways to expand collaboration in areas including maritime security, military exchanges, logistics support, defence production and advanced technologies.
India and South Korea also reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening defence ties in line with their shared vision of a free, open, inclusive and rules based Indo Pacific region. Both sides acknowledged growing strategic convergence between India’s Act East Policy and Seoul’s regional strategic outlook.
Several Memoranda of Understanding were signed during the visit, covering defence cyber cooperation, training exchanges between India’s National Defence College and Korea National Defence University, and cooperation in United Nations peacekeeping operations. The agreements are expected to broaden the scope of bilateral defence engagement.
Rajnath Singh also met Lee Yong-chul, with the two sides discussing joint development, joint production and export opportunities in the defence sector. Discussions were also held on a roadmap for the India Korea Defence Innovation Accelerator Ecosystem, or KIND X, aimed at linking the innovation ecosystems of both countries.
Later, the Defence Minister chaired the India Republic of Korea Defence Industry Business Roundtable, attended by senior government officials and defence industry representatives from both nations. The event focused on exploring opportunities in co development, co production, defence manufacturing and supply chain partnerships.
Addressing business leaders, Singh highlighted India’s expanding defence industrial ecosystem and invited Korean companies to increase engagement with Indian industry under the government’s push for indigenous manufacturing and global partnerships. He said the success of India Korea cooperation in the commercial sector demonstrated the potential for long term strategic collaboration in defence manufacturing and advanced technologies.
“The time has now come to extend this successful model into the defence sector, where technology, innovation, manufacturing capability and strategic trust are becoming increasingly interconnected,” Singh said.
The minister said future defence systems would increasingly depend on technologies such as artificial intelligence, cyber security, semiconductors, autonomous systems, advanced electronics and space based capabilities, adding that India and South Korea possessed significant potential for cooperation in these areas.
He also highlighted India’s growing innovation ecosystem involving start ups, MSMEs, research institutions and private industry, saying young Indian entrepreneurs were increasingly contributing to advanced technology domains including unmanned systems and AI enabled platforms.
During the visit, two agreements between India’s Larsen & Toubro and South Korea’s Hanwha Co Ltd were signed to boost defence technology cooperation and capacity building between the two countries.
Interacting with the Indian diaspora in South Korea, Singh said India’s global standing had strengthened significantly over the last decade under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He described Operation Sindoor as evidence of India’s transformation into a “strong, confident and capable nation” and reiterated that India would not tolerate terrorism or “nuclear blackmail” despite its commitment to the No First Use nuclear policy.
The Defence Minister also underlined the government’s push for self reliance in defence manufacturing, noting that India recorded defence production worth approximately Rs 1.54 lakh crore and exports of nearly Rs 40,000 crore during the 2025 to 2026 financial year. He said exports were expected to rise to Rs 50,000 crore within the next one to two years.
Rajnath Singh began the South Korea leg of his two nation tour by laying a wreath at the Korean War Cemetery in Seoul to honour soldiers who lost their lives during the Korean War.
