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Canberra and Paris are set to explore new opportunities to develop a “mutually beneficial” defence industry network.
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Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles has met with Sébastien Lecornu, French Minister for the Armed Forces to explore ways to bolster bilateral defence and security ties as part of the bilateral roadmap proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in July.
Opportunities to “foster stronger two-way industrial and technological defence partnerships” was among the principles agreed to by the counterparts, aimed at supporting the capability requirements of both the Australian and French militaries.
This is set to involve dialogue between armaments officials in the coming weeks, centring on the development of a new, “mutually beneficial bilateral framework”.
The framework will be reportedly designed to “guide defence equipment and industry collaboration”, addressing the nations’ key defence procurement programs across the maritime, air and space sector.
This is tipped to include land and missile systems development projects.
Additionally, Ministers Marles and Lecornu agreed to explore collaboration opportunities for the development of space defence capabilities, including Earth observation satellites, satellite communication or space domain awareness.
Underpinning these ambitions would be a “deepening of institutional linkages” between the defence organisations of Australia and France.
This would involve expanding information sharing, increasing personnel exchanges, and facilitating closer cooperation between strategic think tanks and academia.
Ramping up defence engagement between the Australian Defence Force and the French Armed Forces was also among the topics of discussion.
This would involve more joint regional deployments and training activities — such as Exercises Talisman Sabre and La Perouse — and increasing mutual access to military infrastructures and expanded secure communications links to improve intelligence exchanges.
This forms part of a broader commitment to strengthen the rules-based order “in the face of an increasingly contested strategic environment”.
Australia and France also agreed to increase humanitarian aid and disaster relief cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and to enhance military cooperation in the Indian Ocean, including with the European Union.
[Related: Exercise Pitch Black, Pegase 2022 trialling France’s force projection capabilities]
