Article Posted on : - May 16, 2017

Indian Navy's INS Sahyadri in Singapore to take part in the International Maritime Review. Indian Navy photo/Twitter

SINGAPORE (PTI): Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba on Monday attended Singapore's first International Maritime Review (IMR) held at the country's prime Changi Naval Base.

Lanba attended the review in which Indian Navy ships INS Sahyadri and INS Kamorta are taking part.

A total of 46 warships and four aircraft from 28 countries, including Singapore, participated in an exercise that included a parade, a land review and a sea review, as part of the IMR.

"The INS Sahyadri was part of the land review while INS Kamorta was part of the sea review. Both the ships had earlier participated in the pre-IMR multinational group sail," Indian Navy Chief Capt D K Sharma said.

Speaking on the occasion, Singapore President Tony Tan Keng Yam said the maritime review "marks the coming of age" of Singapore's Navy, and is a "testament to the strong friendships and extensive network the country enjoys across the world".

The event was organised by the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) to celebrate its 50 years of establishment.

On Sunday, Lanba held extensive talks with his Singaporean counterpart Lai Chung Han and explored ways to further step up maritime cooperation between the two countries.

Lanba will also attend the International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference (IMDEX) 2017 on Tuesday.

His visit aims to consolidate existing Maritime Cooperation initiatives as well as explore new avenues between India and Singapore.

Defence cooperation between the two countries is robust and primarily focused towards Maritime Cooperation.

India signed a Defence Cooperation Agreement with Singapore in 2003, which was renewed in 2015.

Indian Navy and Singapore Navy are partners in the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS), a Maritime Cooperation construct conceptualised and pioneered by Indian Navy in 2008.

The Indian and Singapore navies will conduct bilateral exercise "SIMBEX" off Singapore from 18 to 24 May.

Both countries have been conducting "SIMBEX" since 1994.

Both navies also engage in navy-to-navy Staff Talks, which commenced in 2004.

The 12th Staff Talks were conducted in March 2017 and the 13th Staff Talks are scheduled to be held in 2018.

The Singapore Navy has participated in all the MILAN-series interactions organised at Port Blair by the Indian Navy. Warships of both countries regularly visit each other's ports.