The 24th edition of the joint naval exercise Malabar which kicked off in the Bay of Bengal Tuesday is taking place for the first time on both coasts of India – Bay of Bengal in the east and the Arabian Sea on the west, thereby exercising both fleets of the Indian Navy. Malabar which initially began as a bilateral between US and Indian navies grew as a trilateral as Japan joined in and is now exercising as a quadrilateral force with the Australian Navy participating for the second time after its first brush in 2007.
In what could be construed as a subtle message to both China and Pakistan, coming during an Indo-China border standoff, Malabar couldn’t have been better timed than this.
"Almost all nations have been perturbed by China’s expansionist pursuits. Bilaterally we have exercises with many nations, Indian Navy goes up to the African west coast and exercises with smaller navies there, but individually these Quad countries have also been victims of China’s expansionism, hence it is the responsibility of each of us to keep China in check. It has created a mess on our land borders and now in the Indian Ocean, plus US too has raised concerns about a possibility of China inching closer on the Hawaiian side. Quad grouping has commonalities and Malacca has too much oil passing through it. Quad can bottle China up here if required. In Sunda Straits, India has its own strategy. Its important that the Fleets be exercised," says Former Naval Chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta.
The Indian Navy’s Eastern Fleet based in Vishakhapatnam in the Bay of Bengal often sails on overseas deployment mostly to ASEAN countries further stretching towards Australia and has generally been the host to the Malabar so far. The first phase this year will be from November 3-6 while the second phase will also be four-days long in mid-November in the Arabian Sea, where the Indian Navy’s Western Fleet headquartered in Mumbai is in command. The second phase will be led by Rear Admiral K Swaminathan from the Indian side, who is the Flag Officer Commanding of the Indian Navy’s Western Fleet.
The Indian naval participation in the first phase will be led by Rear Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan, Flag Officer Commanding, Eastern Fleet. Indian Navy units participating in the exercise include warships like destroyer Ranvijay, frigate Shivalik, Off Shore Patrol Vessel Sukanya, Fleet Support Ship Shakti and submarine Sindhuraj. In addition, Advanced Jet Trainer Hawk, long-range maritime patrol aircraft P-8I, Dornier maritime patrol aircraft, and helicopters will also be seen in Malabar-20.
<img class="alignnone size-large wp-image-19954" src="https://indianarrative.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/INSShivalikPHEB-1024×625.jpg" alt="Malabar Excercise " />
"Multilateralism is the flavor of the day if it produces the desired results. India has done away with its inhibitions and moved beyond bilateral exercises. The purpose of this year's quadrilateral Malabar is confidence building, interoperability, and acclimatization. Of course, one of the objectives is also to transmit subtle message to those who cast an evil eye on India," says Vice Admiral Anup Singh, the Former Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Naval Command.
Assets from the USN United States Navy, JMSDF (Japan Maritime Self Defence Force), and the Royal Australian Navy participating in this quadrilateral naval exercise are United States Ship (USS) John S McCain (Guided-missile destroyer), Her Majesty’s Australian Ship (HMAS) Ballarat which is a long range frigate with an integrated MH-60 helicopter, and Onami (Destroyer) with an integrated SH-60 helicopter of the JMSDF.
In view of the ongoing Covid-19 global pandemic, Malabar is being war-gamed as a ‘non-contact, at sea only’ exercise which will validate the high-levels of synergy and coordination between the friendly navies, based on their shared values and commitment to an open, inclusive Indo-Pacific and a rules-based international order.
During the exercise, the four participating navies will conduct a range of high-end training maneuvers like air defence, anti-submarine exercises, anti-air warfare operations, cross deck flying, seamanship, communications, weapon firing and at-sea replenishment between ships.
Australian Defence Minister Linda Reynolds has said, "Participation in sophisticated exercises like Malabar not only highlights the strategic trust between the members, but also strengthens our collective ability to contribute to regional security. Exercise Malabar is an important opportunity to work in concert with like-minded nations to support a secure, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific region."
Adds Vice Admiral (retired) Pradeep Kaushiva, former Commandant, National Defence College: “Every exercise has a stated objective. Malabar too has an objective and a purpose depending on which it is structured. Australia’s participation is about interoperability. It may or may not be part of both the phases.”.
