India Dispatches Stealth Frigate for Naval Drills in Africa, Europe

NEW DELHI: India has dispatched stealth frigate INS Tabar on a three-month deployment to visit ports and conduct exercises with “friendly” foreign countries in Africa and Europe.

“INS Tabar will be deployed till end-September towards enhancing military cooperation with friendly nations. The warship will transit across the Gulf of Aden, Red Sea, Suez Canal, Mediterranean Sea, North Sea and Baltic Sea while making port calls at Djibouti, Egypt, Italy, France, UK, Russia, Netherlands, Morocco, and Arctic Council countries like Sweden and Norway,” said an official.

“In addition to passage exercises with host navies of the countries being visited, the ship is also scheduled to participate in bilateral combat exercises like ‘Konkan’ with the British Navy, ‘Varuna’ with the French Navy and ‘Indra’ with the Russian Navy,” he added.

INS Tabar, commanded by Captain M Mahesh with a crew of 300 personnel and packed with a versatile range of weapons and sensors, will operate in conjunction with the friendly navies to build military relations, develop interoperability and project long-range sustenance.

The Navy undertakes such overseas deployments, especially in the maritime areas of primary interest. “These engagements are aimed to further strengthen maritime security in the region and to consolidate combined operations against maritime threats,” he added.

Source : ToI