Building Global Defence Technology Capabilities: Delhi Defence Dialogue Key Takeaways

By R Chandrakanth

• Technological sovereignty, deeper industry participation and international co-development partnerships: Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh

• Production at scale, product innovation and a move away from dependence on licensed manufacturing as priorities: Baba Kalyani

• Resilience of supply chains needed to be built into the design of co-development programmes: Vivek Lall

New Delhi. India must move beyond importing defence technologies and licensed manufacturing to designing, developing and producing advanced military systems with indigenous intellectual property and the ability to sustain them independently.

Inaugurating the third edition of the Delhi Defence Dialogue 2026, Raksha Mantri, Rajnath Singh called for a stronger domestic defence industrial ecosystem, greater private-sector participation and international partnerships based on co-development, co-production and shared innovation.

Military Preparedness Linked to Technological Capabilities

Addressing the two-day dialogue organised by the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA) on November 3 and 4, Rajnath Singh said military preparedness in the 21st century was intrinsically linked to technological and industrial capabilities. Indigenous production and the ability to independently sustain critical defence equipment and technologies had become essential to national security.

‘Defence Reforms, Aatmanirbharta, Collaborations and Exports’

The theme of this year’s dialogue, ‘Defence Reforms, Aatmanirbharta, Collaborations and Exports’, represented four interconnected pillars of India’s ambition to become a developed nation by 2047, he said. Reforms must create an enabling institutional environment, self-reliance must strengthen indigenous technological capabilities, international collaborations must accelerate access to advanced technologies, and exports must provide the scale and competitiveness needed for a sustainable industrial ecosystem.

The Defence Minister cited the establishment of defence industrial corridors and the corporatisation of the erstwhile Ordnance Factory Board into seven Defence Public Sector Undertakings as important measures to strengthen domestic manufacturing. He also highlighted opportunities for private companies in programmes such as the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, propulsion systems, ATAGS, artillery ammunition and shipbuilding.

Expanding Exports

Referring to 2025 as the Year of Reforms in the Ministry of Defence, he said defence production had reached approximately Rs 1.78 lakh crore in FY 2025-26, while exports had risen to Rs 38,424 crore. Indian defence products were now reaching more than 80 countries.

Rajnath Singh called for expanding exports beyond equipment to include maintenance, repair, training, logistics and technology cooperation. The government has set targets of Rs 3 lakh crore in defence production and Rs 50,000 crore in defence exports by 2029.

Balancing Diplomacy with Hard Power: Ambassador Sujan Chinoy

In his welcome address, Ambassador Sujan R Chinoy, Director General, MP-IDSA, said the dialogue had become an important platform for exchanging perspectives on defence reforms, indigenous capabilities, international collaborations and defence exports.

He observed that geopolitical uncertainty and prolonged conflicts had reinforced the need for peaceful settlement of disputes. While diplomacy and dialogue remained essential, countries could not neglect the development of hard power.

Beyond Licensed Manufacturing: Baba Kalyani

Baba Kalyani, Chairman and Managing Director, Bharat Forge Limited, in his special address on ‘Building a Globally Competitive Defence Industry’, called upon Indian companies to seize the opportunities emerging from changes in global defence supply chains.

He said the gaps in global supply chains would not remain open indefinitely. Indian industry therefore needed to move quickly to establish manufacturing capabilities and position itself as a reliable international supplier. He identified production at scale, product innovation and a move away from dependence on licensed manufacturing as priorities. India needed to build, develop and introduce cutting-edge products and high-value platforms rather than remain confined to manufacturing equipment designed elsewhere.

Kalyani also called for the establishment of a Ministry of External Affairs-Ministry of Defence framework for Defence Lines of Credit (DLoC) to facilitate exports and help Indian manufacturers access overseas markets.

Atmanirbharta in Defence Technologies

The first session, chaired by Dipti Mohil Chawla, IDAS, Additional Secretary, Department of Defence, Ministry of Defence, focused on India’s long-term technological requirements and the need to develop indigenous defence capabilities.

Air Marshal Tejinder Singh said collaboration and technological leapfrogging would be essential for India to keep pace with rapidly changing military technologies. He disclosed that the Integrated Capability Development Plan had been approved and that Mission Sudarshan Chakra had also been finalised. India’s roadmap to 2047 was aimed at building fully indigenous, world-class military systems and developing the capacity to export them.

He expressed the ambition of seeing an Indian-designed fighter aircraft eventually operated by a foreign air force, describing this as an important measure of India’s technological and industrial maturity.

Atmanirbharta in Naval Systems @ 2047

The session on naval self-reliance was chaired by Vice Admiral Kiran Deshmukh, (Retd), former Chief of Materiel, Indian Navy. The discussion highlighted the changing character of maritime warfare and the importance of developing indigenous capabilities in conventional and emerging naval technologies.

The speakers pointed out that the geopolitical environment was no longer characterised exclusively by conventional warfare. Asymmetric warfare was becoming increasingly important, requiring countries to develop submarine-building capabilities, autonomous platforms, hypersonic systems and space technologies.

Atmanirbharta in Land Systems @ 2047

The session, chaired by Maj Gen Kirti Jauhar, (Retd), Chief International Business Development Advisor and Defence Tech, Raphe mPhibr Pvt Ltd, examined the requirements for achieving self-reliance in land warfare systems.

Lt Gen Vineet Gaur,  said Aatmanirbharta was non-negotiable because global supply chains remained vulnerable to geopolitical disruptions and technology denial. India continued to be the world’s second-largest importer of arms, making the development of indigenous capabilities an important strategic priority. He pointed out that decisions taken today would shape military capabilities three to four decades into the future.

The Indian Army had made significant progress in indigenisation, but the time had come for companies to embrace what he described as corporate security responsibility. A portion of the earnings generated through defence contracts should be reinvested in research and development.

Consortium Approach for Atmanirbharta in Complex Technologies

Ashish Rajvanshi, CEO, Adani Defence & Aerospace argued that self-reliance should not be measured merely by the location of a manufacturing facility. What mattered was where the decision-making authority resided and whether a country could replace a critical component denied by an external supplier without seeking permission. Supply chains had become the new frontline, he said.

He highlighted the Development Cum Production Partnership model as a means of enabling industry to become a co-owner of intellectual property associated with future designs. Such arrangements would help Indian companies acquire deeper technological capabilities rather than remain manufacturing partners.

Atmanirbharta in Unmanned Autonomous Systems @ 2047

Capt Nikunj Parashar of Sagar Defence Engineering addressed the development of unmanned autonomous systems for maritime surface operations, underwater applications and naval aviation. He said a nation’s technological strength depended on the ecosystem that supported innovation and the development of advanced platforms.

Unmanned autonomous systems could complement conventional military capabilities, but the objective should be to develop enduring national technological capabilities rather than simply acquire equipment.

Atmanirbharta in Ship and Submarine Building @ 2047

Rear Admiral Chandrasekharan Raghuram, (Retd), Chairman and Managing Director, Hindustan Shipyards Limited, said the knowledge of India’s existing constraints must inform the design of future naval platforms. India had crossed an important threshold in shipbuilding. Every Navy and Coast Guard vessel under construction was now being built in Indian shipyards. Indigenous content in the latest ships had exceeded 75 per cent.

Naval Aviation Atmanirbharta @ 2047

Cmde C D Balaji (Retd), Distinguished Scientist, former Director of the Aeronautical Development Agency and former Programme Director of the Light Combat Aircraft programme, emphasised the importance of sustained investment in research, talent and risk-taking.

He identified materials science, cryptography, lasers, quantum sensing, semiconductors and advanced drones as important areas for achieving technological sovereignty. India was already exporting assemblies and sub-assemblies, reflecting its growing participation in international manufacturing and supply chains. He cited the expanding manufacturing capabilities in cities such as Coimbatore, Lucknow, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.

Atmanirbharta in Aerospace @ 2047

This session examined the technological and industrial requirements for building indigenous capabilities in military aviation, unmanned systems and defence space technologies. It was chaired by former Chief of Air Staff R K S Bhadauria.

Atmanirbharta in Defence Space Technologies @ 2047

Dr G Satheesh Reddy, Member, National Security Advisory Board and former Chairman, DRDO  described space as a decisive military domain and said India’s strategic advantage would depend on its ability to exercise end-to-end technological control.

He identified seven sensing layers required for a modern military space architecture: electro-optical systems, synthetic aperture radar, electronic intelligence, signals intelligence, hyperspectral sensing, missile tracking and VELO. India currently had nine dedicated military satellites but lacked missile-warning and VELO capabilities, he said.

He called for learning from the practices of established space powers, including the US, China, France, Russia and Israel.

Atmanirbharta in Combat Aerial Teaming Systems @ 2047

Gp Capt H V Thakur, (Retd), Chief Test Pilot (Fixed Wing), Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, said the Indian armed forces had a long history of disruptive technological development. That experience needed to be extended to autonomous systems and combat aerial teaming.

Unmanned combat aerial vehicles were being developed using Indian airframes, engines, computers, weapons and artificial intelligence. He expected these developments to gather momentum in the coming years.

Atmanirbharta in UAVs @ 2047

Sameer Joshi, CEO and Director, NewSpace Research & Technologies, said future unmanned warfare would depend on an integrated cyber-physical technology stack incorporating sensing, perception, computing, communications and validation. The integration of these technologies would compress the military observe-orient-decide-act (OODA) cycle.

Joshi pointed out that drones still contained 50-60 per cent imported components, highlighting the extent of India’s dependence on external suppliers. Since Operation Sindoor, India had inducted drones worth Rs 10,000 crore, but had not exported a single drone, he said. The country therefore needed to move into the business of manufacturing indigenous drone components and design systems for production from the outset. He suggested that India study international practices in countries such as South Korea, Turkiye and China.

Atmanirbharta in Aeronautics @ 2047

Air Marshal Sandeep Singh, (Retd), former Vice Chief of Air Staff and former Military Adviser to the National Security Council Secretariat, described aeronautics as perhaps the ultimate frontier of self-reliance.

He identified supply-chain dependence as a weakness in India’s aeronautics sector. Certification requirements for manned aircraft were particularly stringent, making indigenous development and induction a complex process. India had made good progress in airframe development but continued to lag in aero-engines and certain critical sensors. Longer-range drone engines would also pose a challenge.

Atmanirbharta in Futuristic Tech

The session, chaired by Vikas Khitha, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Astra Advisory Partners LLP, and former Vice-President and Head of L&T Precision Engineering and Systems, examined the technologies likely to shape future military capabilities.

Arun T Ramchandani, President, SIDM and Senior Vice-President and Head, L&T Precision Engineering and Systems said quantum technologies and artificial intelligence illustrated the growing convergence between civilian and military technologies. Technological sovereignty was therefore inseparable from strategic sovereignty.

The private sector was contributing around 23 per cent of India’s defence production, while defence exports were also increasing. These developments represented the progress achieved under what he described as Aatmanirbharta 1.0.

He identified long-range deployable hypersonic systems, composite materials and alloys, autonomous systems, quantum technologies and secure position, navigation and timing systems as critical areas in which India needed to establish ownership of technology.

Future of Manned-Unmanned Aerial Systems

Dr Sanjay Badri-Maharaj, Independent Defence Analyst and Security Consultant and Attorney-at-Law from Trinidad and Tobago, said every war since 2000 had served as a laboratory for drone warfare.

Recent conflicts had demonstrated the ability of drones to disrupt shipping lanes and damage critical infrastructure, including in Gulf countries. Manned-unmanned teaming would, however, require substantial improvements in logistics and communications infrastructure.

India-Japan Defence Cooperation

Prof Hideshi Tokuchi, President, Research Institute for Peace and Security, Japan, and former Vice Minister of Defence for International Affairs, highlighted the growing strategic and industrial convergence between India and Japan. Both countries were maritime nations and shared concerns about the regional security environment, particularly China’s growing military presence.

Industrial Corridors, Corporatisation, Defence Economics and Exports’

The session brought together industry and research perspectives on India’s defence manufacturing capabilities, exports, industrial corridors and the need to strengthen the domestic industrial ecosystem.

Dr Samir Kamat, former Chairman of DRDO expressed confidence that India would emerge as a leading defence manufacturer and exporter. He said indigenous systems had performed exceptionally well during Operation Sindoor, generating significant international interest in products such as BrahMos, ATAGS, sonars, the Wheeled Armoured Platform (WHAP) and torpedoes.

However, India continued to face important technological challenges. Dependence on foreign sources for compound semiconductors remained a concern, while the country’s research and development capabilities in advanced materials needed strengthening. The development of materials technology required substantial long-term investments.

India-Russia Defence Co-development Collaborations

Air Vice Marshal Anil Golani (Retd), former Director General, Centre for Air Power Studies examined how the traditional India-Russia defence relationship could evolve into a deeper partnership involving joint research, manufacturing, localisation and sustainment.

Dr Sergey Ermakov, Head, Centre for Military and Political Studies, Russian Institute for Strategic Studies, Moscow, said modern conflicts had underlined the importance of industrial resilience. The next phase of India-Russia cooperation needed to connect India’s self-reliance ambitions with deeper industrial partnerships.

He described the BrahMos joint venture as an important example of successful bilateral technological cooperation. The project demonstrated how a long-term industrial partnership could also acquire an export dimension.

Manufacturing Opportunities

The proposal concerning the Su-57 fighter aircraft also needed to be assessed not merely as a platform acquisition but as an industrial proposition involving technological and manufacturing opportunities.

Dr Abhay A Pashilkar, Director, CSIR-National Aerospace Laboratories, highlighted opportunities in wind tunnels, testing techniques, digital and electronic wind tunnels, aero-engines and advanced materials. In the near term, additive manufacturing and rapid prototyping could provide additional areas of cooperation.

Defence Co-development Collaborations

This session, chaired by Lt Gen Subrata Saha, (Retd), former Member of the National Security Advisory Board and former Deputy Chief of Army Staff, examined opportunities for India to develop advanced military technologies with international partners.

India-US Defence Co-development Collaborations

Vivek Lall, CEO, General Atomics Global Corporation said India and the United States had considerable scope to develop defence technologies together. He emphasised that supply-chain vulnerabilities must become a central consideration in defence planning. The resilience of supply chains needed to be built into the design of co-development programmes rather than treated as an issue to be addressed after a system had been developed.

International partnerships could help countries build sophisticated technological capabilities, but responsibilities, access rights and the ownership of critical technologies needed to be clearly defined at the outset.

Lall identified deep research and systems engineering as important areas for collaboration. He said successful partnerships required clearly defined operational requirements and a credible pathway from research and development to procurement.

Clarity over intellectual property, technical data and the authority to modify or upgrade systems was equally important. Without such clarity, collaborative programmes could face difficulties in achieving their intended objectives.

He also called for a focused agenda for the year ahead, beginning with relatively small operational problems that were suitable for joint development. Rather than attempting to launch large and complex programmes without adequate preparation, India and the US could identify specific operational requirements and develop practical solutions through collaborative research and engineering.

India-UK Defence Co-development Collaborations

Nick de Larrinaga, Sales and Business Director, India, MBDA, said  international collaboration and self-reliance were not contradictory objectives. Trusted partnerships could provide countries with sovereign capabilities across complex weapon systems. He cited the SCLAP cruise missile and Meteor beyond-visual-range missiles as examples of international collaborative programmes.

MBDA was actively supporting Aatmanirbhar Bharat and was willing to work with Indian entities to co-create advanced equipment. The India-UK Defence Industrial Roadmap provided an important framework for expanding industrial cooperation and developing advanced defence technologies.

India-Australia Defence Co-development Collaborations

Commodore (Dr) Peter Leavy (Retd), President of the Australian Naval Institute, highlighted the complementary strengths of India and Australia in the maritime domain.  Australia’s focus on autonomous systems and India’s software capabilities in underwater technologies offered opportunities for collaboration.

He suggested concluding a defence articles memorandum of understanding and establishing a structured industry dialogue to identify specific projects.

Australia had a relatively small industrial base, constrained defence budgets and alliance commitments, while India offered scale, speed and an ambitious self-reliance agenda.The challenge was to bring these different strengths together rather than attempt to make the two industrial systems identical.

Atmanirbharta & Co-development in Propulsion Systems and Aero Engines

The session, chaired by Saurav Jha, Founder, D-Propulse, focused on one of the most challenging areas of India’s defence technological development: indigenous propulsion systems.

Dr S V Ramana Murty, Director, Gas Turbine Research Establishment (GTRE), said the development of an indigenous gas turbine was an essential requirement for achieving aerospace sovereignty. He outlined the characteristics of fifth-generation fighter engines, including super-manoeuvrability, stealth and smart sensors.

International co-design and co-development arrangements could reduce the time required to develop advanced engines. However, such partnerships would have to provide access to complete technical know-how and know-why, including technologies free from restrictive International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) provisions.

Propulsion Systems: Atmanirbharta and Co-Development

Philippe Errera, Executive Vice-President, International Development and Government Affairs, Safran, described co-development as the most practical bridge towards self-reliance.

India possessed a large engineering talent pool, internationally recognised digital capabilities and world-class suppliers. However, successful co-development required careful structuring, the selection of an appropriate partner and a clear roadmap for building sovereign capabilities.

Errera described Safran as a credible partner for the future AMCA engine programme. If self-reliance in propulsion was the destination, co-development represented the most effective route, he said.

Defence Technology Cooperation

Atty. Gilberto C Teodoro Jr., Secretary of National Defense, Philippines, said his country was both an Asian and a Pacific nation because of its extensive maritime borders in the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean.

He expressed concern over China’s unilateral attempts to appropriate nearly 90 per cent of the South China Sea. The Philippines had embarked on an ambitious programme to develop a credible deterrent posture in cooperation with like-minded countries, taking into account its distinctive geographical circumstances.

He highlighted the acquisition of BrahMos missiles by the Philippines, making it the first foreign country to procure the system. He said this also reflected India’s confidence in the Philippines as a defence partner.

Poland and India in the Defence Sector

Dr hab Dorota Domalewska, Director of the Doctoral School, War Studies University, Warsaw, Poland, addressed the opportunities for India-Poland defence industrial cooperation. She said Poland had become the second-largest importer of arms in Europe over the preceding five years, with imports increasing by more than 800 per cent.

However, military modernisation could not be sustained through procurement alone. It required long-term domestic investments, technology transfer, international partnerships and strong industrial cooperation.

Defence Reforms

Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh spoke on ‘A Decade of Defence Sector Reforms’, highlighting the structural changes that had taken place in India’s defence industry. He said an important objective of the reforms had been to establish a level playing field between public-sector and private-sector manufacturers. The corporatisation of the former Ordnance Factory Board units had been a significant step in this direction.

He highlighted DRDO’s decision to share missile technology with the private sector as an important development that could strengthen indigenous manufacturing and design capabilities.

The Defence Secretary also referred to opportunities for women in the armed forces and the development of border infrastructure as important elements of the broader reform agenda.

Stimulating Defence Exports

The session focused on the opportunities and challenges associated with expanding India’s defence exports, including financing, certification, overseas markets and long-term industrial support.

Sanjeev Kumar, IAS, Secretary, Department of Defence Production, said exports were essential for the all-round development of India’s defence industrial base. Indian defence products were now accepted in more than 100 countries. The country’s exports included components, sub-assemblies and ammunition, while Indian companies were also becoming part of the supply chains of major international OEMs.

He called for reforms in export financing and a revamp of the Defence Lines of Credit framework.

Ambassador Chinoy noted that India’s defence exports had crossed the landmark of US$4 billion for the first time in FY 2025-26. India was rapidly transforming from a traditional buyer of military equipment into a significant producer and exporter of advanced defence systems.

India’s defence export opportunities in Africa

Prof Abraham Ename Minko, Professor of Political Science and International Relations, Pan African University, Cameroon, spoke on ‘Beyond Government-to-Government Deals: Reforming India’s Defence Export Policy, Financing and Certification Architecture to Capture Africa’s Emerging Procurement Market’.

He argued that India had considerable potential to meet Africa’s defence requirements. He noted that India’s flagship exports, including BrahMos, had so far largely reached Southeast Asian markets rather than Africa.

African defence procurement priorities were different from those of countries primarily seeking to modernise their armed forces. Many African nations faced active internal security threats, including insurgencies, which influenced their procurement decisions.

He called for establishing a single nodal authority to coordinate India’s defence exports to Africa.

India’s Opportunity in the Southern Cone

Prof Gustavo Alejandro Cardozo, Doctor in Regional Development and International Relations Scholar, Universidade Regional do Noroeste do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul (UNIJUI), Brazil, spoke on ‘Between Washington & Beijing: India’s Opportunity in the Southern Cone’.

He said Argentina and Brazil needed defence procurement partners such as India that could offer cooperation without imposing external political conditions or restrictions on defence relationships. He identified possible opportunities for cooperation between Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and Brazil’s Embraer.

Such a partnership could combine Embraer’s international commercial network and experience with India’s domestic industrial and manufacturing base to address defence aircraft requirements across the Global South.

Deepening Armenia-India Defence and Security Cooperation

Dr Tigran Grigoryan, Director, Regional Center for Democracy and Security, Armenia, said India had emerged as a major arms supplier to Armenia amid significant geopolitical changes. He placed the India-Armenia defence relationship at an estimated US$2 billion, covering air defence systems, artillery, ammunition and military vehicles.

Armenia had purchased some Indian military systems even before their full deployment in the Indian armed forces. It was also the first foreign customer for India’s Akash air defence system.

In his valedictory address, Prof Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, highlighted the substantial growth in India’s defence exports and the opportunities available to strengthen the domestic technology base. He said India’s capabilities in energetic materials, developed over several decades, were emerging as a competitive advantage in international markets.

However, the country needed to exploit opportunities in electronics, propulsion and advanced materials more effectively.

The speakers also underlined that a strong export ecosystem would be essential to achieving economies of scale, improving product quality and making Indian companies competitive in international markets.

The overall message of the dialogue was that India’s defence ambitions for 2047 would require a transition from manufacturing under licence to indigenous design and development, from dependence on foreign supply chains to technological sovereignty, and from being a major defence importer to becoming a globally competitive defence manufacturer and exporter.