Japan will host the 2022 edition of the Malabar naval exercise consisting of India, Australia, Japan and the U.S. in the second week of November, according to official sources. Indian Navy will also participate in the International Fleet Review (IFR) being hosted in the first week of November to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF), an official source said.
This is the latest in a series of bilateral and multilateral exercises in which the Indian armed forces have taken part recently. End of October, the India-U.S. bilateral Army exercise ‘Yudh Abhyas’ is scheduled to take place in the high altitude areas of Uttarakhand, around 100 km (aerial distance) from the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
“The initial and final planning conferences for Malabar have been completed. The exercise is scheduled to be held from November 8 to 18,” a second official source said. While the Navy has not yet given details of its participation, two frontline warships and a P-8I Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) are likely to be deployed, it has been learnt.
