JEDDAH —As part of the Indian Navy's overseas deployment to the West Coast of Africa and Mediterranean Sea, three Indian warships, INS Mumbai, INS Trishul and INS Aditya, arrived in Jeddah on Tuesday on a three-day visit. The warships will engage extensively with the Saudi Arabian Navy during their stay in the country. Apart from professional interactions, sports and social engagement are also planned, which would go a long way in enhancing cooperation and understating between these important navies of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). The visiting ships are part of the Indian Navy's Western Naval Command and are based at Mumbai. The Task Group is headed by Rear Admiral R.B. Pandit, the Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet, who is flying his flag on the guided missile destroyer INS Mumbai. India and Saudi Arabia enjoy cordial ties, reflecting centuries old economic and social-cultural ties. Bilateral trade between the countries has shown remarkable growth and has registered a three-fold increase in the last five years. The 3 million-strong Indian community in Saudi Arabia is the largest expatriate community in the Kingdom and is the most preferred community due to their expertise, sense of discipline and law abiding nature. The Haj pilgrimage is another important component of the bilateral relations with over 170,000 Indians performing Haj last year. Building upon the rich and longstanding relations that have existed between Indian and Saudi Arabia, both nations have developed warm relations in several spheres. The current visit seeks to underscore India's peaceful presence and solidarity with friendly countries of Indian Ocean and, in particular, to strengthen the existing bonds between India and Saudi Arabia. Over the past few decades India has made substantial advances in terms of designing and building warships indigenously and the visiting ships bear testimony to these capabilities. INS Mumbai and Aditya have been designed by design bureau of the Indian Navy and construction at Indian shipyards, namely the Mazagon Dockyard Limited (in Mumbai), and, the Garden Reach Ship Builders and Engineers Limited (in Kolkata). The destroyer Mumbai and the stealth frigate Trishul are equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and sensors. Indian Naval assets have been increasingly deployed in recent times to address the main maritime concerns of the region, including piracy off the coast of Somalia. In addition, the Indian Navy has also been involved in assisting countries in the Indian Ocean Region with Hydrographic Survey. Search and Rescue and other such capacity-building and capability-enhancement activities. The current deployment into the Mediterranean will contribute towards the Indian Navy's efforts to consolidate inter-operability and forge strong bonds of friendship across the seas.
