Article Posted on : - Feb 02, 2010

A file photo of Indo-US naval exercise.

NEW DELHI (PTI): Indian and American navies will hold their annual bilateral 'Malabar' wargame in the Arabian Sea in April-May this year for which the US is likely to bring one of its nuclear-powered submarines.

"The Malabar exercise will be held on the western sea board in the Arabian Sea in April-May and it will be a bilateral wargame," Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Foreign Cooperation and Intelligence) Rear Admiral Sudharshan Shrikhande said on Monday.

"The US is likely to get their nuclear submarine to the wargame," he told reporters here, but ruled out it going multi-lateral as in 2007 when 25 ships from five countries including Japan and Australia had participated, drawing protest from Left parties.

Shrikande said India would hand over its warship INS Thilangchong to the Maldivian Coast Guard, which was rechristened 'Huravee' by them, after a refit at Visakhapatnam on February 11.

"That apart, Indian Navy and Coast Guard's participation in joint anti-piracy patrol along the Maldivian coast continues with our ships and Dornier aircraft stationed there.

BEL is providing consultancy for Maldives to set up a radar chain on its atolls," he added.