India-Germany conducts Joint Exercise in Gulf of Aden

Navies of India and Germany conducted a joint exercise in Gulf of Aden on August 26, 2021.

Key Facts

• The joint exercise included helicopter landings as well as search & seizure operations.
• Frigate ‘Trikand’ from Indian Navy exercised with German frigate called ‘Bayern’.
• INS Trikand is deployed for anti-piracy patrol in Gulf of Aden region.

Significance of the exercise

The exercise between both the navies in the Indian Ocean leg of Indo-Pacific Deployment 2021 enhanced the interoperability and facilitated exchange of best practices between them in the maritime domain.

India-Germany Defence ties

Navies of India and Germany conducted the first ever joint exercises in 2008 after both the nations signed an ‘anti-piracy co-operation agreement’ in 2006. Both the counties currently maintain an ongoing dialogue in the arena of commercial maritime security and cooperation in the area of anti-terrorism.

Military of Germany

Military of Germany has been principally structured to defend Eastern Europe and to support NATO operations in Western European theatre of operations. Germany does not have any sovereign territories in the Indo-Pacific region and is also incapable of power projection in the region, unlike UK or France.

India-Germany Relations

In Europe, Germany is India’s largest trading partner. India’s exports to Germany mainly focus on textile sector, chemical products, metal & leather goods, electrical engineering products and foodstuffs. Germany will also play a key role in India-EU free trade talks called the Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA). Furthermore, India can act as a hot destination for companies of Germany to invest and contribute in Make in India program.

Month: Current Affairs - August, 2021