US Navy Chief hosts Indian Chief Karambir Singh on aircraft carrier Carl Vinson at Malabar Exercise

Bay of Bengal, Oct 14 (UNI) US Navy Chief Admiral Mike Gilday hosted Indian Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh and other senior Indian Navy officers aboard aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson on Thursday during the Malabar Exercise which is going on in the Bay of Bengal.

Apart from Admiral Singh, Commander in Chief of Eastern Naval Command Vice Admiral A.B. Singh, and ten other officers of the Indian Navy visited the ship during the ongoing second phase of the exercise off the coast of India.

“This visit to Carl Vinson during Malabar was an important opportunity to see first-hand the integration between our two navies at-sea,” Gilday said, according to a statement issued by the US Navy.

“By our navies continuing to exercise together, as we are doing right now alongside Japanese and Australian naval forces, there is no doubt our partnership will only continue to grow. Cooperation, when applied with naval power, promotes freedom and peace, and prevents coercion, intimidation and aggression.”

Chargé d’Affaires of the US Embassy Patricia Lacina, who also participated in the visit to Carl Vinson, expressed similar sentiments.

“Exercise Malabar is a showcase example of defense collaboration between our four partnering countries, demonstrating what we can accomplish when we work together to advance our common interests in the Indo-Pacific,” she said.

“We stand committed to ensure peace, security, and economic prosperity in the region and beyond.”
Rear Adm. Dan Martin, Commander, Carrier Strike Group 1, said he was honored to host the visitors aboard Carl Vinson. “We value the bonds and personal relationships we have developed during Exercise Malabar,” said Martin.

“Hosting today’s visit was the capstone to a positive and successful high-end maritime exercise and it has been a pleasure to work with our Indian maritime partners as we exchanged tactics, techniques and procedures in a multitude of disciplines and complex warfighting events.”
The second phase of the Malabar Exercise started in the Bay of Bengal on October 12, and will culminate on October 15.

Japan Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF) and Royal Australian Navy (RAN) are a part of the exercise along with the Indian and US Navies. First Phase of the exercise was conducted in the Phillipines Sea from August 26 to 29, 2021.

The Indian Navy’s participation includes INS Ranvijay, INS Satpura, P8I Long Range Maritime Patrol Aircraft and a Submarine. The US Navy is being represented by the Aircraft Carrier USS Carl Vinson along with two destroyers, USS Lake Champlain and USS Stockdale. The JMSDF is being represented by JS Kaga and JS Murasame. Whilst, the Royal Australian Navy is being represented by HMAS Ballarat and HMAS Sirius.
Exercise Malabar was first conducted in 1992.
This exercise builds on progress made during previous iterations, and is designed to strengthen maritime security cooperation, improve the participating nations’ ability to conduct joint/bilateral operations, and improve military-to-military coordination, the US Navy said.

Carl Vinson is on a scheduled deployment operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations to enhance interoperability through alliances and partnerships while serving as a ready-response force in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific region.