From Iran to Saudi Arabia and Israel, Indian Navy pulls off visits to 40 nations
By Manu Pubby, ET Bureau | 15 Sep, 2015, 02.49AM IST
By Manu Pubby, ET Bureau | 15 Sep, 2015, 02.49AM IST
Admiral Dhowan said the unprecedented footprint in the Indian Ocean Region and beyond reflected the role the Navy played in shaping the maritime environment.
NEW DELHI: The Indian Navy has managed to send frontline warships to almost 40 nations in the past year, creating a record on engagements across the world and reflecting the foreign policy focus of the government.
The Navy has also pulled off the almost impossible by deploying warships to nations as diverse as Iran and Israel — within ten days of each other — as well as Saudi Arabia and the UK, all within the past month. Several Navy officers ET spoke with said that this is the first time that over three dozen nations have been directly engaged, calling it a significant increase in interaction with friendly foreign nations.
"In the past 12 months, Indian warships have been deployed from the western Pacific in the east to the west coast of South Adriatic and have shown the flag in almost all major ports and interacted with friendly navies in the region," Navy chief Admiral RK Dhowan told ET.
The nations visited is diverse and reflects Indian interests across the world — from Vietnam, Japan, Singapore and Myanmar in the east to Egypt, Turkey, France and Spain in the west. Frontline warships like the indigenously made stealth frigate, INS Sahyadri, have even sailed as far as Hawaii within the past year. "This unprecedented footprint in the Indian Ocean Region and beyond reflects the role the Navy plays in shaping the maritime environment in our area of interest," Admiral Dhowan said.
Sources told ET that the increase in engagements across the world reflected Prime Minster Narendra Modi's increasing focus on foreign relations and plans to steadily increase Indian presence even further as newer platforms join service. Modi, who will be addressing top military commanders onboard aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya next month, has already made it clear that his government's priority is on the maritime domain with most major modernisation projects cleared pertaining to the Navy, including an ambitious Rs 1 lakh crore plan to construct six nuclear powered attack submarines indigenously.
"There is possibly no other major Navy that would be welcome in places as diverse as Iran, Israel and Saudi Arabia. Our warships sailed into ports in all three nations within two weeks, with Saudi Arabia being the last on September 10. This reflects India's good relations with nations across the world," an officer told ET.
NEW DELHI: The Indian Navy has managed to send frontline warships to almost 40 nations in the past year, creating a record on engagements across the world and reflecting the foreign policy focus of the government.
The Navy has also pulled off the almost impossible by deploying warships to nations as diverse as Iran and Israel — within ten days of each other — as well as Saudi Arabia and the UK, all within the past month. Several Navy officers ET spoke with said that this is the first time that over three dozen nations have been directly engaged, calling it a significant increase in interaction with friendly foreign nations.
"In the past 12 months, Indian warships have been deployed from the western Pacific in the east to the west coast of South Adriatic and have shown the flag in almost all major ports and interacted with friendly navies in the region," Navy chief Admiral RK Dhowan told ET.
The nations visited is diverse and reflects Indian interests across the world — from Vietnam, Japan, Singapore and Myanmar in the east to Egypt, Turkey, France and Spain in the west. Frontline warships like the indigenously made stealth frigate, INS Sahyadri, have even sailed as far as Hawaii within the past year. "This unprecedented footprint in the Indian Ocean Region and beyond reflects the role the Navy plays in shaping the maritime environment in our area of interest," Admiral Dhowan said.
Sources told ET that the increase in engagements across the world reflected Prime Minster Narendra Modi's increasing focus on foreign relations and plans to steadily increase Indian presence even further as newer platforms join service. Modi, who will be addressing top military commanders onboard aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya next month, has already made it clear that his government's priority is on the maritime domain with most major modernisation projects cleared pertaining to the Navy, including an ambitious Rs 1 lakh crore plan to construct six nuclear powered attack submarines indigenously.
"There is possibly no other major Navy that would be welcome in places as diverse as Iran, Israel and Saudi Arabia. Our warships sailed into ports in all three nations within two weeks, with Saudi Arabia being the last on September 10. This reflects India's good relations with nations across the world," an officer told ET.
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