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External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar unveils India-Spain Dual Year logo with his Spanish counterpart José Manuel Albares in Delhi. (PTI)
ALMOST TWO years after Airbus–Tata C-295 Final Assembly Line in Vadodara was jointly inaugurated in October 2024, the first ‘Made in India’ C-295 aircraft will roll out of the factory before September this year, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Wednesday. Jaishankar, who met Spain’s Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares in Delhi on Wednesday, said the development reflects the “growing depth of our defence industrial collaboration”.
The Airbus C295 (previously CASA C-295) is a medium-range twin-engine turboprop tactical transport aircraft that was designed and initially manufactured by the Spanish aerospace company CASA, which is now part of the European multinational Airbus Defence and Space division.
“Airbus–Tata C-295 Final Assembly Line in Vadodara was jointly inaugurated by our leaders in October 2024. We are expecting the first ‘Made in India’ C-295 aircraft to roll out of the factory before September this year. It reflects the growing depth of our defence industrial collaboration and our commitment to build resilient manufacturing capabilities,” he said.
The Spanish Foreign minister said they reviewed bilateral relations and key international issues and they also agreed to work together to elevate the relationship to a strategic partnership in the near future.
Jaishankar said India and Spain enjoy warm and friendly relations, rooted in shared democratic values and “respect for multilateralism and a rule-based order”. “Our political engagement has grown steadily, marked by regular high-level exchanges,” he said.
Explained
The C-295 aircraft manufacturing deal
In 2021, India signed a Rs 21,935 crore deal with Airbus Defence and Space to procure 56 C295 aircraft. Under the agreement, Airbus was to deliver the first 16 aircraft in ‘fly-away’ condition from its final assembly line in Seville, Spain, within four years and the subsequent 40 aircraft were to be manufactured by Tata Advanced Systems Ltd in India.
Underlining that “economic partnership is an important pillar of our relationship”, the EAM said, “Spain is among India’s important trade partners in the EU, and our bilateral trade in goods has crossed USD 8 billion in recent years.”
According to a statement from Spain’s Foreign Ministry, Albares assessed the evolution of trade relations in recent years “very positively”, describing it as “characterised by significant and more balanced growth than in previous periods”.
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India and Spain will celebrate this year the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations as well as the Dual Year of Culture, Tourism and Artificial Intelligence. “This initiative reflects our shared commitment to combining our rich cultural heritage with future-oriented cooperation,” Jaishankar said.
Shubhajit Roy, Diplomatic Editor at The Indian Express, has been a journalist for more than 25 years now. Roy joined The Indian Express in October 2003 and has been reporting on foreign affairs for more than 17 years now. Based in Delhi, he has also led the National government and political bureau at The Indian Express in Delhi — a team of reporters who cover the national government and politics for the newspaper. He has got the Ramnath Goenka Journalism award for Excellence in Journalism ‘2016. He got this award for his coverage of the Holey Bakery attack in Dhaka and its aftermath. He also got the IIMCAA Award for the Journalist of the Year, 2022, (Jury’s special mention) for his coverage of the fall of Kabul in August 2021 — he was one of the few Indian journalists in Kabul and the only mainstream newspaper to have covered the Taliban’s capture of power in mid-August, 2021. ... Read More
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