India-France-UAE discuss taking cooperation forward in defence, energy

Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra participated in the India-France-UK Trilateral Dialogue and discussed taking the cooperation forward in the fields of defence, energy and environment, innovation and people-to-people exchanges, according to the statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs.

The three countries agreed to remain in touch and regularly review progress on the trilateral roadmap. "Foreign Secretary @AmbVMKwatra participated in a meeting of focal points of the India-France-UAE trilateral dialogue and discussed potential cooperation in the fields of defence, energy and environment, innovation and people-to-people exchanges," MEA said in a tweet.

Kwatra, who is on an official visit to France, also held the Foreign Office Consultations with Secretary-General Anne-Marie Descotes of France.

"Foreign Secretary @AmbVMKwatra held Foreign Office Consultations with Secretary-General Anne-Marie Descotes of @francediplo_EN," MREA tweeted.

This meeting came as the follow-up after the Foreign Ministers of India-France-UAE adopted a roadmap during their telephone call on February 04, 2023.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, France Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan held a phone call in which they discussed collaboration in areas such as education, business, maritime and green energy.

"Discussed convergences and further collaboration in education, business, maritime, culture and green energy for a stable peaceful and prosperous Indo-Pacific," Jaishankar said in a tweet.

The three foreign ministers had met for the first time in a trilateral format in September last year on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

They agreed to establish a formal trilateral cooperation initiative, with the aim of expanding cooperation in various fields of mutual interest in acknowledgement of their shared desire to promote international stability and prosperity, and to further build upon the constructive and collaborative ties that exist between the three countries.

It is in this context that a phone call between the three Ministers was held on Saturday to adopt a roadmap for the implementation of this initiative.

During the phone call, the three sides agreed that the trilateral initiative will serve as a forum to promote the design and execution of cooperation projects in the fields of energy, with a focus on solar and nuclear energy, as well as in the fight against climate change and the protection of biodiversity, particularly in the Indian Ocean region, a joint statement said.

For this purpose, the three countries will explore the possibility of working with the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) to pursue concrete, actionable projects on clean energy, the environment, and biodiversity, a statement said.

It said the trilateral initiative will serve as a platform to expand cooperation between the three countries' development agencies on sustainable projects.

The three countries agreed that they will seek to ensure greater alignment of their respective economic, technological, and social policies with the objectives of the Paris Agreement.

"In support of these endeavours, a range of trilateral events will be organized in the framework of the Indian Presidency of the G20 and the UAE's hosting of COP-28 in 2023, respectively," the statement said.

The three countries also agreed to expand their cooperation through initiatives such as the Mangrove Alliance for Climate led by the UAE and the Indo-Pacific Parks Partnership led by India and France. (ANI)