In pursuance of India’s ‘Act East’ Policy, Indian Naval Ships INS Shivalik (F47) and Kadmatt arrived at Muara, Brunei as part of their deployment to South East Asia on 09 August 2021. During the stay at Muara, Brunei, the crew of both the ships will participate in various bilateral professional interactions with Royal Brunei Navy. In the backdrop of the COVID19 pandemic, all interactions and exercises will be conducted strictly as ‘Non-Contact’ activities and hence would be devoid of any physical contact between the personnel of participating navies.
The exercise will provide an opportunity to both the navies to enhance inter-operability, gain from best practices and develop common understanding of procedures for Maritime Security Operations. The harbour interactions and exercises at sea aim to consolidate the strong bond shared by the two navies and would be another step towards strengthening India-Brunei defence relations. The bilateral exercise would conclude with a Passage Exercise with Royal Brunei Navy at sea on 12 August 2021.
INS Shivalik (F47) is the lead ship of her class of stealth multi-role frigates built for the Indian Navy. She is the first stealth warship built by India. INS Shivalik is equipped with a mix of Russian, Indian and Western weapon systems. She is also the first Indian navy ship to use the CODOG (COmbined Diesel Or Gas) propulsion system. INS Kadmatt (P29) is the second of four anti-submarine warfare corvettes built for the Indian Navy by the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers of Kolkata under Project 28.
The two ships are equipped with a versatile array of weapons and sensors, can carry multi-role helicopters, and represent the maturation of India’s warship-building capabilities. On completion of bilateral exercise with Royal Brunei Navy, the ships will head to Guam to participate in exercise MALABAR-21 with the Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF), Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and the United States Navy (USN). The harbour phase of the Malabar naval exercises is scheduled for August 21-24, with the sea phase taking place on August 25-29.
