IT Correspondent
Mumbai, Aug 18:
The Maritime Partnership Exercise between the Indian Navy and Royal Bahrain Naval Force (RBNF) is set to begin in the Persian Gulf on Wednesday.
INS Kochi, flying the flag of Rear-Admiral Ajay Kochhar, Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet (FOCWF) has reached Manama, Bahrain as part of its Persian Gulf deployment.
The FOCWF called on Chief of the Naval Staff of the Royal Bahrain Naval Force, Rear Admiral Mohammed Yousif al-Asam on Monday and was received by a ceremonial Guard of Honour at their Naval Base. A co-ordination and operational planning conference between the Indian Navy and Bahrain Navy teams was also held ahead of the Maritime Partnership Exercise.
The FOCWF also called on Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Prime Minister and Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Bahrain at the Al-Qudaibiya Palace.
RBNF is the maritime branch of the Bahrain Defence force. The navy consists of 7 combat vessels, 31 patrol craft, 10 landing ships, and over 700 personnel. The fleet is based at Mina Salman base and has a flying wing that can operate off the corvettes, consisting of two MBB BO-105 helicopters.
The present exercise will provide an opportunity for both the navies to gain from best practices and develop a common understanding of procedures for Maritime Security Operations.
The Indian Navy had undertaken the Passage Exercise (PASSEX) with RBNF Corvette
Al Muharraq in the Persian Gulf under “Operation Sankalp” in March this year. PASSEX are conducted regularly by the Indian Navy with units of Friendly foreign navies, whilst visiting each other’s ports or during a rendezvous at sea. The exercises are aimed at fostering interoperability and reflecting the commitments of both, India and Bahrain, to build cooperative partnerships in meeting emergent maritime challenges.
