Article Posted on : - Sep 11, 2010

INS Tabar. A file photo

NEW DELHI (PTI): Indian warships have begun a trilateral exercise with the navies of Brazil and South Africa in Durban off the African coast as part of their efforts to build inter-operability in carrying out maritime operations.

Four warships including a destroyer and two frigates from the Indian Navy's Western Fleet are participating in the biennial India-Brazil-South Africa Maritime (IBSAMAR) exercise, which kicked off on Friday.

The wargame would focus on visit-board-search-seize, anti-air and anti-submarine operations, apart from naval warfare manoeuvres such as fuelling in mid sea.

The exercise comes in the middle of a two-month long deployment of the Indian warships off the African coast when they also sail to Mauritius and Seychelles for carrying out anti-piracy patrols and visit ports in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique and South Africa.

A Navy officer said here that the deployment would provide the Indian Navy "good opportunity to re-establish and further relations" with the navies of the African continent in areas of training and passage exercises.

"The exercise is to develop interoperability among the three navies so that they could carry out joint operations during times of need in the high seas," the officer said.

Indian naval destroyer INS Mysore, frigates INS Tabar and INS Ganga along with tanker INS Aditya have joined IBSAMAR exercise. Brazil is participating with its warships, while South Africa has brought its submarines.

"This is the second edition of IBSAMAR. The first edition was held in 2008. This year's exercise is a much more complex than the previous one," the officer said.

This time there would be no aerial fleet of the Indian Navy participating in the IBSAMAR exercise, though South Africa was bringing in their aircraft, he added.

IBSAMAR is being held around the South African coast and there would be visits to Durban, Cape Town, Simon's Town and Port Elizabeth as part of the exercise.

India is the lead Navy for this edition of IBSAMAR and Brazil will take upon the role in the next edition to be held in 2012.