Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday unveiled ‘RAKSHA’, a comprehensive 10-year strategic framework aimed at giving India’s defence diplomacy a clear long-term direction and strengthening the country’s defence partnerships around the world. The document was released in New Delhi and seeks to align India’s national security priorities with a more proactive approach to bilateral and multilateral defence cooperation.
The new framework comes at a time when India is expanding its engagement with friendly countries amid a rapidly changing global security environment. According to the Ministry of Defence, RAKSHA is designed to provide an actionable roadmap for the next decade, with a focus on building stronger security relationships, improving defence cooperation and contributing to regional and global stability.
A major element of the roadmap is the deepening of strategic partnerships. India plans to strengthen bilateral and multilateral security cooperation with friendly nations through enhanced defence engagements. The framework is also expected to encourage greater interaction between defence establishments and create opportunities for long-term cooperation in areas of mutual strategic interest.
Capacity building is another important pillar of RAKSHA. The roadmap places greater emphasis on joint military exercises, training programmes and the exchange of operational experience and best practices. Such initiatives are intended to improve interoperability between partner forces while strengthening India’s defence relationships through practical military cooperation.
The framework also links defence diplomacy with India’s growing indigenous defence manufacturing capabilities. RAKSHA seeks to promote Indian-made defence platforms and systems in international markets, supporting the country’s ambition to become a reliable global defence manufacturing hub. Expanding defence exports is expected to serve not only an industrial objective but also become an increasingly important instrument of India’s strategic engagement with partner nations.
Maritime security has been given particular importance under the new roadmap. India aims to strengthen its position as a ‘Net Security Provider and First Responder’ in the Indian Ocean Region, reflecting the country’s growing focus on maritime security, regional stability and cooperation with nations across the wider Indian Ocean.
The Ministry of Defence described defence diplomacy as a core pillar of India’s foreign policy. Through RAKSHA, New Delhi intends to build deeper defence partnerships while supporting peace, stability and a rules-based international order. The framework also reflects India’s broader transition from being primarily a defence equipment importer towards becoming a stronger indigenous producer and defence exporter.
The launch of the 10-year roadmap therefore represents an effort to integrate India’s diplomatic outreach, military cooperation and expanding defence-industrial capabilities into a single long-term strategic vision. As geopolitical competition and security challenges continue to evolve, the RAKSHA framework is expected to guide India’s defence engagements and strengthen its role in regional and global security.