Indian Navy Reinforces Arabian Sea Presence Amid Rising Attacks

The Indian Navy has increased its presence in the Arabian Sea in reaction to increased threats to cargo ships from Iranian proxies. INS Kochi, INS Kolkata, INS Chennai, INS Mormugao, and INS Visakhapatnam are the five advanced guided missile destroyers the Navy is deploying to safeguard sea lanes from Bab el-Mandeb to the Indian coast.

With INS Kolkata at the entrance of the Red Sea, INS Kochi south of Yemen’s Socotra Island, INS Mormugao in the west Arabian Sea, INS Chennai in the central Arabian Sea, and INS Visakhapatnam patrolling the north Arabian Sea, these destroyers are strategically positioned and distinct from the US-led coalition.

The 25,000-ton logistics tanker MV Swarnamala, which has a sizable fuel capacity, supports the activities of the Indian Navy. In addition, a long-endurance Sea Guardian drone for continuous monitoring and a Boeing P-8I anti-submarine warfare aircraft are deployed. This action is intended to prevent terrorist organisations and groups in the Middle East, such as the Shia Houthis in Yemen and Shia Kaitab Hezbollah in Iraq, who are sponsored by Iran, from launching missile strikes on commercial ships.

The deployment was triggered by recent incidents, such as the Iranian missile destroyer striking the chemical tanker MV Chem Pluto off the coast of Gujarat. The Indian Navy’s duty goes beyond stopping black trafficking and piracy; it also aims to prevent missile assaults on crucial commercial shipping routes, protecting trillions of dollars worth of oil and merchant trade from Iranian militia threats.

The Coast Guard patrols the Exclusive Economic Zone along the western coast to support naval operations. The Coast Guard maintains increased attentiveness against suspicious behaviour along the Indian coastline and in the Arabian Sea by using Dornier surveillance planes and offshore patrol vessels.

Reference: Hindustan Times

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Source: Maritime Shipping News