In an effort to further enhance maritime ties with countries in the Gulf region, three warships including INS Delhi, INS Tarkash and Deepak under the command of Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet, Rear Admiral Ravneet Singh, arrived in Dubai on Saturday on a four-day visit.
During the visit, the crew of Indian Navy ships will undertake professional interactions with the UAE Navy towards enhancing co-operation between the two forces. In addition, calls on senior Government and military authorities, sporting and cultural interactions and sharing of best practices, aimed at strengthening mutual understanding between the two Navies, are also planned.
The visiting ships are also likely to conduct exercises with the UAE Navy, said officials, adding Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar is scheduled to visit UAE for two days on May 18.
Maritime co-operation between the two countries has increased steadily since the inaugural Navy-to-Navy Staff Talks in January 2007. Reciprocal port visits, high-level delegations and training exchanges have further bolstered Naval co-operation between the two countries.
Indian Navy ships last visited UAE in September 2015 wherein INS Delhi, INS Deepak, INS Trishul and INS Tabar berthed at Dubai. India and UAE are also members of Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS), a voluntary and co-operative initiative between 30 countries of the Indian Ocean Region, which has served as an ideal forum for sharing of information and cooperation on maritime issues. UAE hosted the 2010 edition of IONS at Abu Dhabi.