The Indian Navy’s second raid against pirates in the Atlantic Ocean’s Gulf of Guinea (GoG) is now over. The Navy said Thursday that the Offshore Patrol Vessel INS Sumedha, which is currently on an extended range operational mission in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of West Africa, ran an anti-piracy patrol for 31 days.
The first anti-piracy patrol in the Gulf of Guinea was done by the INS Tarkash in September and October 2022.
The Navy said in a statement, “The region is critical for India’s national interests as it is an important source for India’s energy requirements… INS Sumedha’s operational deployment to a crucial geographical region of immense relevance to India has further strengthened our national interests.” “The deployment also helped regional partners improve their skills through joint training by the ship’s crew, which shows that India and the Indian Navy are committed to helping our friends.”
The Navy also said that the deployment of INS Sumedha improved Navy-to-Navy connections with fleets in Senegal, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Angola, and Namibia. The ship’s involvement in the first India-EU Joint Exercise in the GoG was another exciting part of the deployment.
The Hindu reported earlier that on October 24, India and the EU held their first joint naval practice in the Gulf of Guinea. The exercise included the INS Sumedha, the Italian Navy Ship ITS Foscari, the French Navy Ship FS Ventôse, and the Spanish Navy Ship Tornado. The drill came after the third meeting of the EU-India maritime security dialogue, which took place in Brussels on October 5.
