New Delhi, June 29 (IANS) Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal A P Singh, held a meeting with Chief of Staff of the Italian Air Force, Lieutenant General Antonio Conserva, in New Delhi on Monday, discussing ways to further strengthen defence cooperation and enhancing military-to-military engagement.

The two officials also discussed issues of mutual interest.

“Lieutenant General Antonio Conserva, Chief of Staff of the Italian Air Force, called on Air Chief Marshal A P Singh, Chief of the Air Staff, during his official visit to India,” the Indian Air Force (IAF) posted on X.

“The visit featured discussions between the senior leadership of the Indian Air Force and the Italian Air Force on issues of mutual interest and avenues to further strengthen bilateral defence cooperation and enhance military-to-military engagement,” it added.

Earlier in the day, Lieutenant General Antonio Conserva paid homage to the fallen bravehearts at the National War Memorial.

Last month, PM Modi was on a two-day official visit to Italy, where he held talks with Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni and President Sergio Mattarella.

During their meeting, PM Modi and Meloni decided to elevate bilateral ties to the level of a Special Strategic Partnership. The two leaders welcomed the “strong momentum” of high-level exchanges and agreed to hold annual meetings of leaders, including on the sidelines of multilateral events, as well as regular ministerial and institutional-level meetings.

Both leaders engaged in comprehensive discussions covering the entire gamut of the India-Italy partnership, according to the statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office. They also reviewed the progress made in bilateral cooperation across all domains of the Joint Strategic Action Plan 2025-2029, agreeing to further expand collaboration in trade and investment, defence and security, science and technology, research and innovation, space, energy, AI and critical technologies, education, culture and people-to-people ties.

PMs Modi and Meloni also expressed satisfaction with deepening defence cooperation through ministerial and official interactions, exchange of port visits, and regular engagement of defence forces. They welcomed the signing of the Joint Declaration of Intent, and an Industrial Roadmap for collaboration in co-design, co-development and co-production of defence products.

–IANS

akl/as