Paris, June 28 -- The Indo-French Joint Military Exercise SHAKTI-VIII continues to strengthen operational interoperability and mutual cooperation between the Indian and French armies.

Held at Camp Larzac, La Cavalerie in southern France, the exercise features the participation of 90 personnel, primarily troops from a Jammu and Kashmir Rifles battalion, alongside the French Army's 13e Demi-Brigade de Legion Etrangere.

The joint training encompasses a wide spectrum of mission-specific drills tailored to sub-conventional warfare. These include combat shooting in semi-developed terrain, obstacle crossings, urban combat drills, joint patrols, and troop insertion techniques--all conducted under realistic operational conditions to sharpen tact...