India, Saudi Arabia to carry out first-ever naval exercise
The Royal Saudi Naval Forces, on Tuesday represented by the Eastern Fleet, and the Indian Naval Forces began joint naval drills in the Arabian Gulf.
Through the conduct of joint exercises and the development of the command, control, and communications process, the exercise seeks to unite conceptions and share experiences. According to the Saudi Press Agency, coordinated actions between the Royal Saudi Navy and the Indian Navy maintain maritime security and freedom of navigation in the Arabian Gulf.
The “Indian Ocean” exercise, according to the commander of the Eastern Fleet, Rear Admiral Majid bin Hazza Al-Qahtani, is the first of its type between Saudi and Indian naval forces.
In addition to exchanging experiences and unifying methods and ideas of combined military action, command, control, and communications, he stated that the exercise seeks to improve military cooperation in the sphere of naval operations.