NEW DELHI (PTI): The Armies of India and Sri Lanka will hold a 13-day joint exercise in Pune beginning Friday with a focus on enhancing interoperability in counterterror operations.

The 'Mitra Shakti 2017' will be the 5th edition of the joint exercise between the armies of the two countries.

The exercise will take place in Pune from October 13 to 25, a senior defence ministry official said.

The Mitra Shakti series of exercises has been one of the key defence cooperation initiatives between the two countries since 2013.

The exercise is taking place at a time when the region faces evolving security dynamics.

The 4th edition had taken place in Sri Lanka last year.