New Delhi [India], January 16 : The Indian Navy, with destroyer INS Mumbai, along with eight other Indo-Pacific nations, has been deployed in the Malacca, Sunda and Lombok straits between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean on Thursday as part of the fifth edition of the multinational naval exercise La Perouse 25. The exercise, which began on January 16, will continue till January 24.
According to a press release, the exercise will be conducted by the French Carrier Strike Group (CSG), led by Charles De Gaulle aircraft carriers, as part of Mission Clemenceau 25.
The Indo-Pacific nations participating in this major exercise include Australia with the destroyer HMAS Hobart, Canada with the destroyer HMCS Ottawa, the US with the LCS USS Savannah, France with its French CSG, India with the destroyer INS Mumbai, Indonesia providing base support on land for the Atlantique 2 maritime patrol aircraft of French CSG, Malaysia with the destroyer FFG Lekir and its embarked helicopter and the vessel Gagah Samudera, the UK with the offshore patrol vessel HMS Spey, and Singapore with the patrol vessel RSN Independence.
The straits of Malacca, Sunda and Lombok, which are the mainstays of global maritime trade, are subject to numerous human-induced risks such as maritime accidents and environmental hazards, illegal immigration, drug trafficking, and natural risks like earthquakes and tsunamis, the release stated.
The exercise would focus on strengthening maritime safety and improving interoperability among the participating nations to respond collectively to maritime crises and training would cover a range of maritime security operations, including searching for and intervening on ships suspected of illicit activities.
"Strengthening maritime safety will be at the core of this exercise, with the development of interoperability and the ability to act collectively in the event of a maritime crisis, which will contribute to it," the release stated.
"The planned interactions will enable work on a broad spectrum of maritime security operations. The various forces distributed in the area will train to search for and then intervene on ships suspected of illicit activities, with suspect vessels being played by vessels of the force," it added.
All navies would use IORIS, a system for communication and coordination during maritime crises, to synchronise their efforts.
"During this exercise, all navies will train in the use of IORIS, a communication and coordination system dedicated to the exchange of information and documents in order to effectively and collectively face a maritime crisis in a synchronised manner," the release further read.
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