India is sending a destroyer and a guided missile stealth frigate to the South China Sea to take part in a maritime drill with the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean).
This will be the first time that this kind of exercise has been done. The harbor part of the exercise started on Tuesday at the Changi Naval Base in Singapore. On Sunday, warships from the countries taking part in the drill will head into the South China Sea.
India has also sent warships to the South China Sea before, but this is the first time that a naval drill like this has been done with the Asean grouping. Several Asean countries, like Vietnam and the Philippines, have maritime issues with China and have been working more and more closely with India on defense.
Admiral R Hari Kumar, who is in charge of the navy, is on a business trip to Singapore. He and Rear Admiral Sean Wat, who is in charge of the Singapore Navy, kicked off the Asean-India Maritime Exercise.
The INS Delhi, India’s first destroyer made by Indians, and the INS Satpura, India’s first guided missile stealth ship made by Indians, have both arrived in Singapore.
The P8I Maritime Patrol aircraft, which is very good at what it does, will also take part in the drill. The Indian ships are from the Visakhapatnam-based eastern force.
