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INDIA DEFENCE CONSULTANTS
India–Indonesia Coordinated Patrol The
Army, Navy and Air Force are all exercising with foreign countries
and the Navy went further. Earlier we had reported that the Indian
Navy inspected the USS Trenton in USA. With the Navy active all over
the Indian Ocean, the ship can be well exploited with innovative
thinking, for peace and wartime usage. For
example as of now the Navy is involved with the
month long fifth India–Indonesia Co-ordinated Patrol. It
got underway with the arrival of Indonesian Naval Ship KRI Teuku
Umar, commanded by Major Irvansyah, at Port Blair on 01 Sep 05.
Colonel Aswoto Saranang, the Commanding Officer Naval Base Sabang,
was also embarked onboard the ship as Senior Officer. The Indonesian
naval ship is a Parchim class corvette of German origin, an advanced
patrol ship with anti-submarine warfare capabilities. The ship
joined the Indonesian Naval Fleet in 1997 and is presently based at
Jakarta. The
present patrol will last from 01 to 30 Sep 2005. From the Indian
side, four ships comprising guided missile corvette INS Kulish,
Landing Ship Tank INS Mahish and two Fast Attack Crafts Tarassa and
Tilanchong are taking part in the coordinated patrol. The objective
of coordinated patrol is to enhance mutual understanding and
inter-operability between the two navies and conduct joint patrol to
prevent smuggling, piracy, drug trafficking, sea pollution and
illegal fishing. The first India–Indonesia Coordinated patrol was
conducted in September 2002 following an agreement between the two
governments on cooperative activities in the field of defence. Since
then, four joint patrols have been successfully executed along the
International Boundary Line (IBL) between the two countries in
accordance with mutually agreed guidelines and procedures. That is
in the East. Let’s turn West. Navy Ship Escorts Omani Sailboat
To celebrate 50 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries, Omani sailboat Majan set sail from Oman retracing a historic sea trade route that existed between the two nations, during the Bronze Age. "Majan" set sail from Sur in Oman to Bet Dwarka in India on a two week long voyage using sails and navigating with the help of celestial bodies as was done in the ancient times. The
Indian Naval Ship Gomati is escorting the "Majan" during
this historic voyage and will provide Search and Rescue cover, to
ensure her safe passage to the Indian port of Okha on the Saurashtra
Coast in Gujarat. India and Oman have age-old friendly relations
between the people of the two countries. T he diplomatic relations
between the two nations have withstood the test of time over the
last 50 years. The two coastal states have had maritime interactions
dating back many millennia when trade was through sea routes. In
recent years the Navies of the two nations have consolidated and
strengthened this relationship by conducting regular exercises and
ship visits. This has resulted in understanding and recognising the
importance of the roles of India and Oman in International maritime
affairs. Postscript We have always maintained that India must do business with China but now that they have got their way and the Line of Actual Control called ‘Line of Peace and Tranquility’ is to become the border more or less as China had always wanted, there are lessons to be learnt by our intelligence so that they can warn our politicians. It is said Indian Intelligence has become a six man show and the rest are happy to be time passers as coordination the key to Intelligence is missing. We picked up an article from Asian Wall Street Journal titled ‘WATCH CHINA. IT PLAYS NAUGHTY’, which will soon be posted on our site. Watch this space.
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