India-Turkey to hold joint war exercises off Mumbai coast

[ejazr]

India-Turkey to hold joint war exercises off Mumbai coast -  National News – News – MSN India

New Delhi, Jul 6 (PTI) Enhancing their defence ties, Navies of India and Turkey will engage each other in two-day wargames off the coast of Mumbai starting Sunday.

"Four ships of the Turkish Navy will arrive at the Mumbai port tomorrow as part of their deployment in the Indian Ocean region (IOR) and will participate in the two day exercise with our us," Navy officials said here.

The four ships are part of the Combined Task Force 151 anti-piracy coalition and have been deployed in the Gulf of Aden.

After the port call, the Turkish ships will take part in the passage exercise on July 10 where the two sides will undertake anti-submarine warfare and coordinated attack drills, they said.

The Turkish Navy contingent includes three frigates including TCG Barbaros and TCG Geliboli along with the tanker TCG YBK Gangur and are coming to India after their deployment in Karachi.

The Indian Navy will field its destroyer INS Mumbai along with Beas class frigates INS Brahmputra and INS Betwa.

The exercise is taking place soon after Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma visited Turkey for four days last month.

Navy sources said Turkey has a strong shipping industry and there is great potential for partnership between the two countries in areas of shipbuilding.

 

[Yusuf]

WTH!! Turkey?? This is a new as far as I can remember. What will Pakistan think about it? Isn't turkey their long beloved brother who is going to buy hundreds of Blunders I mean thunders?

 

[ejazr]

Indian and Turkish army and naval staff have had reciprocal visits last year and closer defense relations was part of the agreement when the Turkish president visited India last year.

India, Turkey navy wargames begin Sunday News

New Delhi, July 6 (IANS) Indian and Turkish navies will embark on a two-day major war game in the Arabian Sea off Mumbai beginning Sunday, when four warships from each side will match their sea battle skills, an Indian Navy officer said Wednesday.

The four Turkish warships that will join the exercise are scheduled to make a port call in Mumbai Thursday, reaching here from Karachi port in Pakistan where they had docked a week earlier.

Frigates TCG (Turkish Republic Ship) Barbaros, TCG Gelibolu, and TCG Gemlik, supported by a fleet tanker TCG YBK Gungor will be the Turkish ensemble for the war game, the officer said.

Incidentally, Barbaros runs on the same engine as that of India's latest indigenous stealth frigate INS Shivalik that was commissioned last year in Mumbai. The other two Turkish frigates are of the Gabya class.

The warships are in India in the last leg of their Indian Ocean deployment and this Turkish Naval Task Group is headed by Rear Admiral A. Sinan Ertugrul.

Indian Navy will be represented in the drill by INS Mumbai, a Delhi-class guided missile destroyer, INS Betwa and INS Brahmaputra, both Beas-class frigates, and a Shishukumar-class HDW diesel-electric submarine. The air element in the exercise will be an Indian Navy Dornier maritime patrol aircraft, the officer said.

'The exercise will include anti-submarine warfare, coordinated strike and interdiction drills, besides other manoeuvres in the seas that are expected to be fairly rough,' he added.

The Turkish Navy, which is part of the anti-piracy Nato-sponsored Combined Task Force-151, has led the mission a number of times. A Turkish navy frigate TCG Giresun was recently part of a joint effort with Indian Navy Dornier aircraft in thwarting a pirate attack on a Chinese-owned bulk carrier MV Full City in the Arabian Sea in the first week of May.

Indian Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma was in Turkey from June 13 to 16 this year, while the Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik was there in April 2010. Turkish Naval Forces commander Admiral Esref Yugur Yigit visited India in December 2010 on a reciprocal visit.

Turkey has a fairly respectable naval ship-building industry and India sees a possibility of mutual cooperation in this area.

 

[Pakistani Nationalist]

They will arrive after the joint exercise with Pak Navy...

 

[Yusuf]

They will arrive after the joint exercise with Pak Navy...

Just a link to that would help us understand the nature of the exercise.

I seriously request PN not to send PNS Babur for the exercise, the captain of that boat has serious issues with brushing with other boats.

 

[Tshering22]

This would be IMO a symbolic exercise rather than a deeply entrenched one, just as a kickstart of a prospective stable defense relationship. I think we should do something parallel with Israel as well. Just because of stupid politics, we don't officially announce our wargames with Israel. If all these countries are our friends, then we need to give them equal announcement. And that too when we're talking about the second largest arms provider to India after Russians.

 

[sanjay]

India will also use Turkey as a conduit to pay for oil imports from Iran

India will Pay for Iranian Oil via Turkey and UAE

 

[debasree]

why turkey ,they r a close allie of pakistan,i think its a more symbolic rather than any millitary one.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

why turkey ,they r a close allie of pakistan,i think its a more symbolic rather than any millitary one.

Pakistan is also China's ally a country Turkey does not have the greatest relations with.

 

[Yusuf]

Pakistan is also China's ally a country Turkey does not have the greatest relations with.

Turkey's present govt is moving towards china quite rapidly. I remember some news about their advancing strategic relations a few days back. Turkey is looking to love away from NATO.

 

[Blackwater]

Very bad move by Turkey. They must take permission from His Holliness pakistan. (The Thakedar of Islamic world)

 

[Blackwater]

why turkey ,they r a close allie of pakistan,i think its a more symbolic rather than any millitary one.

I don't think so. Turkey is very intelligent Islamic country unlike others. They understand the strategic value of India. It may be possible ,relation with pak is mere Islamic obligation