India and the UK on Sunday kicked off their major `Konkan’ bilateral naval exercise in the western Indian Ocean, with the two sides deploying aircraft carriers, warships, submarines and fighters for the intense combat manoeuvres.
The Indian warships are being led by aircraft carrier INS Vikrant, with its MiG-29K fighters on board, while the UK carrier strike group (CSG) is led by HMS Prince of Wales, with its F-35B multi-role stealth jets, as well as “assets” from Norway and Japan for the exercise, which comes ahead of British PM Keir Starmer’s visit to India on Oct 8-9.
“The UK and India believe in an Indo-Pacific that is free and open. We share an ambition for a modern defence and security partnership, a fundamental pillar of UK-India Vision 2035, agreed by our PMs this year,” said British high commissioner to India, Lindy Cameron.
“The engagements between the CSGs of our two navies demonstrate our commitment to maintaining the rules-based international order in the region and lay the groundwork for future cooperation,” she added.
The biennial naval exercise will include complex maritime operational drills focusing on anti-air, anti-surface and anti-submarine exercises as well as flying operations and other seamanship evolutions.
