Ahead of sea drill, naval chiefs meet in Japan

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 5

Ahead of the 2022 edition of Malabar exercise, Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar met Navy Chiefs of the Royal Australian Navy, Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force and US Navy in Japan today.

They exchanged views on further enhancing inter-operability in future editions of Malabar.

The Indian Navy Chief is visiting Japan from November 5 to 9 for three events.

Admiral Kumar will attend the inauguration of the four-nation Malabar exercise (November 8-18), marking the 30th anniversary of the engagement, being held off the coast of Yokosuka, Japan.

The US, Japan and Australia are also participating.

All four nations have prominent navies in the Indo-Pacific Region.

The exercise will witness a high-tempo exercise among the participating nations in multiple domains of warfare. This includes operations at sea, under-sea and air operations, including live firing drills.

Admiral Kumar will also witness the Japanese International Fleet Review (IFR) and the Western Pacific Naval Symposium (WPNS).

The Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force will conduct the IFR in Yokosuka on November 6 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of its formation.

India is an “observer” at the WPNS and Admiral Kumar will attend the meet hosted (November 7-8) at Yokohama, Japan.

The Indian Navy Chief would also be interacting with his counterparts and other heads of delegations from 30 countries participating in the IFR and WPNS.

Indian naval ships INS Shivalik and INS Kamorta arrived at Yokosuka on November 2 to participate in the IFR and Malabar exercise.

3 events lined up

• Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar will attend the inauguration of the four-nation Malabar exercise (Nov 8-18)
• He will also witness the Japanese International Fleet Review and the Western Pacific Naval Symposium

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