All news
26 Mar, 08:25

Russian Pacific Fleet’s warships arrive at India’s Chennai port for joint naval drills

The southern Indian port city of Chennai that accommodates the headquarters of the Tamil Nadu naval area has been chosen as the venue for the upcoming drills

CHENNAI /INDIA/, March 26. /TASS/. A group of the Russian Pacific Fleet’s ships comprising the corvettes Rezky and Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov and the support vessel Pechenga has arrived at the Indian port of Chennai for the Indra Navy joint maneuvers, a TASS correspondent reported from the scene.

Captain 1st Rank Aleksey Antsiferov commands the Russian naval group. Indian Navy officers greeted the Russian naval sailors on the shore.

The southern Indian port city of Chennai that accommodates the headquarters of the Tamil Nadu naval area has been chosen as the venue for the upcoming drills. The exercise will run in two stages. The first stage will take place on the shore and involve meetings on practicing interoperability of naval ships from both countries. This stage will also envision official visits, meetings and sports competitions, sightseeing tours and cultural events. During the second phase due to begin next week, the naval ships will deploy to the sea for three-day maneuvers in the Bay of Bengal.

India’s warships participating in the drills include the Project 61-ME destroyer Rana built in the Soviet Union in 1970-1980 on order from the Indian government and transferred to India in 1982 and the corvette Kuthar designed by Indian naval engineers and constructed in Mumbai.

Russia and India have been regularly conducting Indra drills for already more than 20 years. The drills aim to improve operational interoperability and bolster bilateral naval cooperation. In recent years, land and naval forces alternately participate in the maneuvers.