India

The Hindu | English | News | Dec. 11, 2025 | Geopolitical Conflict and Disputes

The inaugural meeting of the India-Brunei Joint Working Group (JWG) on Defence Cooperation took place in New Delhi, marking a major advancement in bilateral defence ties. Key discussion areas included expanding military exchanges, joint training, maritime security cooperation focusing on sea lane safety and Humanitarian Assistance & Disaster Relief (HADR), capacity building, and opportunities for industry and technology collaboration.

The meeting was co-chaired by Amitabh Prasad, Joint Secretary in India’s Ministry of Defence, and Poh Kui Choon, Deputy Permanent Secretary in Brunei’s Ministry of Defence. Both countries signed the Terms of Reference (ToR) to formally establish the JWG, creating a structured platform to review initiatives and explore new collaborative opportunities. They agreed to pursue a structured roadmap under the JWG framework and reaffirmed their commitment to peace, stability, and a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific.

During her two-day visit, Ms. Poh Kui Choon met with Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh and also visited the newly inaugurated DPSU Bhawan, a facility designed to serve as a central hub for India’s 16 Defence Public Sector Undertakings to promote collaboration, innovation, and global defence manufacturing capabilities.

Times of India | English | News | Dec. 11, 2025 | Geopolitical Conflict and Disputes

India, France, and the UAE are conducting a major air combat exercise over the Arabian Sea on December 10-11, 2025, aimed at enhancing trilateral defense cooperation and military interoperability in the Indian Ocean and Indo-Pacific regions. The Indian Air Force is deploying advanced fighter jets, including Sukhoi-30MKIs and Jaguars, supported by IL-78 mid-air refuelers and airborne early-warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft from bases such as Jamnagar and Naliya in Gujarat. France and the UAE will participate with their Rafale and Mirage fighter jets and additional aircraft operating from the Al Dhafra airbase.

The exercise area is located around 200 nautical miles from Karachi, Pakistan, with a Notice to Airmen (Notam) issued by India to secure the airspace during the drill. This follows a similar trilateral air combat exercise named "Desert Knight" held in December 2024. India has been actively conducting such exercises to strengthen military synergy with regional and strategic partners, including France, the US, and Australia, to improve combat skills, tactics, and procedures.

In addition to air drills, the navies of India, France, and the UAE held their first trilateral maritime partnership exercise in June 2023 to address conventional and non-traditional threats. The trilateral cooperation framework established by foreign ministers in 2022 encompasses multiple domains including defense, technology, energy, and environment, guided by a detailed roadmap devised by the three countries.

The Economic Times | English | News | Dec. 11, 2025 | Regulation

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has advised several financial services and business groups to reduce the number of non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) they own. Groups, including a Mumbai-based capital market and real estate lender and a large northern consumer goods company, have been asked to reorganize their NBFCs into fewer entities to simplify regulatory oversight, risk assessment, and reduce supervisory challenges. Although no formal written directive has been issued, the RBI expressed these views during and after annual inspections.

Companies often maintain multiple NBFCs for reasons such as business lines, risk profiles, investor participation, product differentiation, or family office structures. The RBI's guidance aims to address issues like regulatory arbitrage, masking of over-leveraging, asset-liability mismatches, and obscured beneficial ownership. Consolidation may involve merging companies with similar business activities to improve transparency and control risks within groups. NBFC classification applies when financial assets and income exceed 50% of a company's total assets and gross income, with core investment companies also falling under this category.

The RBI's stance is influenced by past financial crises, such as the IL&FS and DHFL defaults, where fund co-mingling within groups was problematic. Regulations thus encourage distinct financial services activities to operate as separate entities to ease supervision. The RBI has consistently discouraged banks from holding multiple NBFC licenses and pushed for consolidation of overlapping NBFC businesses, although different financial service segments like retail versus infrastructure funding can remain separate. Recent RBI communications suggest a slight relaxation regarding banks' equity stakes in NBFCs while maintaining the consolidation approach.