AIR Spotlight: Defense Ministers' Conclave

AIR Spotlight is an insightful program featured daily on the All India Radio News on air. In this program, many eminent panelists discuss issues of importance which can be quite helpful in IAS exam preparation.

This article is about the discussion on: Defense Ministers’ Conclave on the sidelines of the 14th Aero India 2023.

Participants 

1. Major General (Retd.) Ashok Kumar – Defence Analyst
2. Omvesh Upadhyay – AIR Correspondent

Context – The Defence Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh hosted the “Defence Ministers’ Conclave” held on the sidelines of the 14th edition of Aero India in Bengaluru. The conclave sought to address aspects related to deepening cooperation for capacity building (through investments, R&D, co-development, co-production, joint ventures and provisioning of defence equipment), training, space, AI and maritime security to grow together.

The Defence Ministers’ Conclave – Shared Prosperity through Enhanced Engagements in Defence, SPEED

The conclave offered an opportunity for defence ministers of all friendly foreign countries and India to engage with each other to carry forward India’s vision of ‘Make in India, Make for the World’ for a secure and prosperous future for generations to come. 

• Over 160 delegates from several countries, including Defence & Deputy Defence Ministers from 27 countries, 15 Defence and Service Chiefs and 12 Permanent Secretaries from 80 countries participated in the conclave attesting to India’s tremendous growth and engagement in the defence and security sectors.
• The conclave was based on the theme “Shared Prosperity through Enhanced Engagements in Defence, SPEED’’.
• The theme characterises the present era wherein geopolitical and security realities are shifting at hitherto unwitnessed speed and therefore, real-time collaboration is needed to respond to such fast-paced changes. 
• Any major change in the domain of economy, security, health or climate has global reverberations and when peace and security of a region is threatened, its impact is felt by the whole world in multiple ways. 
• The Russia-Ukraine conflict has affected the global supply chain. Such conflicts prevent countries in many distinct parts of the world from reaching vital resources like food and energy.
• In an interconnected and networked world, the transmission of shocks is rapid and it becomes impossible to insulate one country from the issues of other countries. 
• Summits, conferences and conclaves are held to ensure that the concerns of all are suitably addressed for a common, secure and prosperous future.

Aero India, 2023

Aero India is a biennial international military and civil air show. The Yelahanka Air Base, Bengaluru has been hosting the air show since it started in 1996. 

• In the 14th edition of Aero India, more than 80 countries along with defence companies including 100 foreign and 700 Indian companies participated. The Indian companies include MSMEs and startups. Such huge participation bears testimony to the capabilities of a new India.
• The event focuses on displaying indigenous equipment/technologies and forging partnerships with foreign countries.
• Tejas, INS Vikrant, and advanced manufacturing facilities in Surat and Tumkur reflect the potential of India in the defence sector. 
• Earlier, India used to be the largest defence importer and now it has started exporting defence equipment to 75 countries in the world. India aims to take defence exports from 1.5 billion to 5 billion by 2024-25. With this potential in the defence sector, the world is gravitating towards India.

Maritime Security –

With a coastline of over 7000 km, maritime security is an important aspect of national security for India.

• The growing presence of the Chinese Navy and its acquisition of a base in Djibouti, access facilities in Malaysia, the base in Gwadar and the maritime silk route is very concerning.
• In the Defence Ministers’ Conclave, stress was laid on a rule-based international order in which ‘might being right’ is replaced by fairness, cooperation and equality amongst all sovereign nations. 
• The main objective of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) between India, the USA, Japan and Australia is to ensure and support a “free, open and prosperous” Indo-Pacific region.

Artificial Intelligence in Defence Sector –

The progress in AI will bring around new potential in the defence sector. AI would change the features of defence technology as it did with aircraft and nuclear weapons. AI has the potential to change the very nature of warfare in future.

• AI can enhance the efficacy of existing weapon systems and even lead to an entirely new class of weapons. The use of AI in weapon systems has the potential to lead to the development of autonomous weapons, which are weapons that can theoretically choose and engage targets without human intervention. It is also possible to have weapon systems that could work in conjunction with human soldiers. 

Conclusion – The Defence Ministers’ Conclave helped India to engage with other countries to carry forward the vision “Make in India, Make for World”.

Read previous AIR Spotlight articles in the link.

AIR Spotlight: Defence Ministers’ Conclave – Aero India 2023:- Download PDF Here