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EuroScope Roundtable on “Best Defence Practices in the European Region and Lessons for India”

Hosted by Global Eye Intelligence | 30th August 2025

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ESPIRIDI is proud to announce that our Founder & Director, Ms. Lynn Frederick Dsouza, who also serves as Country Advisory Member (India) – G100 Security & Defence, participated as a distinguished panelist at the EuroScope Roundtable hosted by Global Eye Intelligence.

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The roundtable brought together senior defence leaders, academics, and practitioners to explore how Europe’s evolving defence strategies can inform and strengthen India’s security and innovation ecosystem.

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Key Themes of the Discussion

• Institutional coordination and strategic planning in the European defence industry

• Transparent and agile procurement mechanisms

• Innovation-driven funding and support ecosystems

• Dual-use technology and integration

• SME-empowered defence ecosystems

• Strengthening the industry–academia–government triad

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Highlights from the Panel

• Dr. Paul McGarr (King’s College London) emphasized adapting European practices to India’s political and socio-economic realities.

• Dr. Christian Kaunert (Dublin City University) stressed flexibility in defence posture for managing diverse security threats.

• Air Marshal GS Bedi (Retd) and Colonel Rohit Dev (Retd) highlighted procurement challenges, trust deficits, and the importance of dual-use technologies, suggesting multi-functional test beds for defence industrial corridors.

• Ms. Lynn Frederick Dsouza provided a strategic foresight perspective, underscoring:

  • India’s urgent need for an open innovation system,

  • Building a full-stack defence ecosystem to overcome access challenges,

  • Developing infrastructure and multi-level cooperation to close systemic gaps.

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Defence Foresight Insights

• Trends: AI, quantum, hypersonics, Indo-Pacific hybrid warfare.

• Scenarios:

  1. Tech Leap: 2.5–3.5% GDP, indigenous hubs.

  2. Import Reliance: 1.9% GDP, reliance on imports.

  3. Collaborative Hub: QUAD/EU-style integration.

• 3-Year Roadmap:

  • Year 1: Institutional setup (IDCA/IDF), R&D to 1.5%, procurement reform.

  • Year 2: Tri-partite centres, 40% private role, deeper EU ties.

  • Year 3: Open innovation, KPIs, autonomy safeguards.

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EU–India Comparisons & Synergies

• EU surge: $693B defence expenditure in 2024 (+17%), NATO target 3.5–5% GDP by 2035, ReArm programme (€800B by 2029).

• India’s challenges: DRDO delays (67%), HAL overruns (78%), Kaveri engine shortfalls, Dhruv/Tejas crashes, BrahMos misfire.

• Synergies: EDF (€7.3B), ReArm (~$800B), PESCO for interoperability, iDEX/ADITI (₹750 cr grants).

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The EuroScope Roundtable showcased a powerful blend of academic insight, veteran experience, and strategic foresight. Ms. Dsouza’s interventions highlighted pathways for India to leverage European models to:

• Boost innovation while embedding governance,

• Achieve greater strategic autonomy with accountability,

• Balance armament with disarmament, ensuring that growth in capacity strengthens rather than destabilises regional and global peace.
   

This participation reflects ESPIRIDI’s commitment to global strategic foresight, disarmament and defence governance, and fostering international collaboration to strengthen India’s role in the evolving global security and peace architecture.

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This participation reflects ESPIRIDI’s commitment to global strategic foresight, disarmament and defence governance, and fostering international collaboration to strengthen India’s role in the evolving global security architecture.

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Moderator: Nikhil Deshpande
Organisers: Sumedh Desai, Nishit Singh, Prachi Upadhyay, Kevin Biju, Vignayaa R R (Global Eye Intelligence)