India and Kuwait Hold Inaugural Joint Defence Committee Meeting in New Delhi

India and Kuwait held the inaugural meeting of their Joint Defence Committee (JDC) in New Delhi on 28 August 2026, marking a new step in expanding bilateral defence cooperation under the two countries’ Strategic Partnership.

During the meeting, both sides agreed to strengthen cooperation across a broad range of areas, including military training, joint exercises, military medicine, staff talks, defence industry collaboration, and research and development.

The JDC has been established to operationalise the Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Cooperation signed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Kuwait in December 2024, when bilateral relations were elevated to a Strategic Partnership.

The meeting was co-chaired by Amitabh Prasad, Joint Secretary, and Brigadier General Raed Alsakran, who led a five-member Kuwaiti delegation. The Indian side included representatives from the Army, Navy and Air Force, along with officials from the Department of Defence Production, DRDO, Armed Forces Medical Services and the Ministry of External Affairs.

The Kuwaiti delegation also interacted with representatives of India’s defence industry at DPSU Bhawan in New Delhi, where discussions focused on potential areas of industrial cooperation. Further engagement with Indian defence companies was scheduled during the delegation’s visit.

Ahead of the talks, Brigadier General Alsakran laid a wreath at the National War Memorial and paid tribute to India’s fallen soldiers.

India and Kuwait have maintained diplomatic relations since 1962, supported by longstanding trade, cultural and people-to-people ties. The creation of the Joint Defence Committee adds an institutional mechanism to the growing security and defence dimension of the bilateral relationship.