India and Ethiopia hold inaugural Joint Defence Cooperation meeting in New Delhi
India and Ethiopia held their inaugural Joint Defence Cooperation (JDC) meeting in New Delhi on 15 October 2025, under the defence cooperation MoU signed by their Defence Ministers earlier in 2025.
Summary
India and Ethiopia held their inaugural Joint Defence Cooperation (JDC) meeting in New Delhi on 15 October 2025. It was co-chaired by Amitabh Prasad, Joint Secretary (International Cooperation), Ministry of Defence, and Ethiopia's Director General for Defence. The two sides reviewed ongoing cooperation and discussed training, joint exercises, medical cooperation and defence industry engagement. The meeting is part of the mechanism set up under the Defence Cooperation MoU signed by the two Defence Ministers earlier in 2025. Ethiopia is among India's key defence partners in Africa, with defence cooperation dating back to 1958; the two countries established full diplomatic relations in 1950.
Key facts
- Meeting
- Inaugural India–Ethiopia JDC meeting
- Date/place
- 15 Oct 2025, New Delhi
- Indian co-chair
- Amitabh Prasad, JS (International Cooperation), MoD
- Basis
- Defence Cooperation MoU, 2025
- Defence ties since
- 1958
- Diplomatic relations
- 1950
Practice MCQs 2 questions
With which African country did India hold its inaugural Joint Defence Cooperation (JDC) meeting in New Delhi on 15 October 2025?
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Correct answer: C — Ethiopia
PIB: the inaugural Joint Defence Cooperation meeting between India and Ethiopia was held in New Delhi on October 15, 2025.
Consider the following statements about India–Ethiopia relations: 1. Defence cooperation between the two countries dates back to 1958. 2. The two countries established full diplomatic relations in 1960. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
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Correct answer: A — 1 only
Only 1 is correct. PIB: India–Ethiopia defence cooperation dates back to 1958; the two nations established full diplomatic relations in 1950.