New Delhi: Army chief General Bikram Singh on Sunday proceeded to France on a four-day visit there to strengthen the defence ties between the two countries.
The visit by Gen Singh will add the necessary impetus to the existing defence relationship and broad-base it into a mutually beneficial partnership, an Army press release said here.
India shares good bilateral and strategic relations with France that are multifaceted and have been strengthened over the years with regular exchange of visits at political, diplomatic and military levels, it said.
During the period, Gen Singh will hold discussions with French Defence Minister Jean Yves Le Drian, Chief of General Staff Admiral Edouard Guillaud and his French counterpart Gen Bertrand Ract-Madoux on various defence-related issues.
The Indian Army chief will visit the Land Forces Command in Lille and the Military School at Draguignan also.
He will also lay wreath at Neuve Chapelle Memorial, dedicated to the Indian soldiers who laid down their lives in France and Belgium from 1914?1918 in the First World War.
PTI
