India, Japan begin anti-submarine warfare exercise

Maritime security and freedom of navigation has also figured prominently in India’s recent bilateral and multi-lateral defence dialogues.

The Indian and Japanese navies on Sunday started an intensive air anti-submarine warfare exercise in the Indian Ocean, a defence official said.

Khanderi, the second of Indian Navy’s Scorpene’ class stealth submarine. (HT File Photo)

The exercise in the Arabian Sea will conclude on October 31, Indian Navy spokesperson Captain DK Sharma said in a tweet.

A P-8 I Long Range Maritime Reconnaissance Anti Submarine Warfare aircraft of Indian Navy and two P-3 Orion Anti Submarine Warfare aircraft of Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMDSF) will participate in the exercise.

The P-3 Orion aircraft reached the Naval Air Station INS Hansa in Goa on Sunday for the exercise, which comes when presence of Chinese ships and submarines in the Indian Ocean has increased and Beijing has been posturing aggressively in the South China Sea.

Maritime security and freedom of navigation has also figured prominently in India’s recent bilateral and multi-lateral defence dialogues.

India and Japan, along with US had also focused on anti-submarine warfare in the trilateral exercise Malabar in July this year. China had said at that time that it hoped the exercise is not aimed at other countries.