Indian Navy's multi-national exercise, Milan 24, is all set to be organised in Visakhapatnam from February19-27. Previously, the 11th edition of this exercise was held in February-March 22 in Visakhapatnam under the Eastern Naval Command with the theme 'Camaraderie-Cohesion-Collaboration.'
Giving details here on Thursday, navy officials said Milan is a biennial multi-national naval exercise which started in 1995 with the participation of four foreign countries (Indonesia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand) in consonance with India's 'Look East policy'.
The exercise flourished under the aegis of Andaman and Nicobar Command till its 10th edition. With the growing stature of the exercise and the requirement of a larger staging and hosting base, Visakhapatnam, the City of Destiny was chosen as the preferred venue for future Milan exercises.
The city is ideal to host the event owing to various aspects, namely major commercial hub, large port, steep coastal gradient closer to its shores enabling ships to operate closer to the shore and long coastline offering excellent viewing experience for the public. The scenic view from RK Beach in particular, coupled with excellent infrastructure is conducive to hosting various events planned during Milan for the local populace along the shore, such as operational demonstrations and the International City Parade.
The forthcoming edition will comprise two phases - the 'Harbour phase' and 'Sea phase'. The harbour phase, aimed to promote cultural sharing amongst the participating nations, would comprise of International Maritime Seminar, International City Parade Maritime Tech Exhibition, Subject Matter Expert Exchange, Milan of Young Officers and various sporting events.
During the Sea phase, ships along with aircraft of Friendly Foreign Countries would participate along with the Indian Navy's aircraft and other units. It will involve large-force manoeuvres, advanced air defence operations, anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface operations.