New Delhi — The Indian Navy is currently participating in a trilateral naval exercise as part of the India-Brazil-South Africa Maritime (IBSAMAR 2010) exercise being conducted in the Indian Ocean region off Durban. IBSAMAR is conceptualised by the Joint Work Group for Defence, which is one of 16 Joint Working Groups of the three nations looking into various cooperation initiatives.
This second edition of the IBSAMAR is a two-week nautical exercise which will conclude on September 27th. IBSAMAR is being held around the South African coast and there would be visits to Durban, Cape Town, Simon’s Town and Port Elizabeth as part of the nautical exercise. This maritime exercise involves 11 ships of the navies of South Africa, which is the host country, India which is the lead country and Brazil which is the support country. Four warships including a destroyer and two frigates from the Indian Navy’s Western Fleet are participating in the biennial India-Brazil-South Africa Maritime (IBSAMAR) exercise.
The navy and army have sent a proposal to the government seeking permission to transport a 5,000-strong armed infantry and special forces troops, tanks and weapons – an independent brigade group (IBG) – on foreign shores for active operations. This capability has both been controversial and strategically provocative. It has been learnt that after years of consultations, the army and navy have finally started seeing eye to eye on the modalities required to incrementally build up the capability to deliver a full brigade- strength contingent of troops – including two special forces units – with arms, ammunition, vehicles and weapons outside the Indian mainland.
