The 10th anniversary celebrations of the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) at Kochi ended on Wednesday on a note befitting the glorious maritime traditions of yore with the flagging off of five sailing ships.
IONS is a voluntary initiative started by the Indian Navy in 2008 to bring together navies of the Indian Ocean rim nations. IONS has become a platform for navies to discuss issues of mutual concern such as maritime security and disaster relief measures and arrive at solutions for cooperation.
Indian Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba and Rear Admiral Hossein Khanzadi, chief of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy, jointly flagged off the four Indian Navy ships and one Royal Navy of Oman yacht amid cheers from schoolchildren and a flypast by Indian helicopters.
While the tall ships INS Tarangini and INS Sudarshini will sail with the Zinat al Bihaar yacht to Muscat, the two Indian Navy sail boats—INSV Tarini and INSV Mhadei—will be sailing to the Seychelles. The 'tall ships sail-together' will commemorate 10 years of IONS.
The ships that sailed on Wednesday boast of stellar service histories: the Tarangini was the first Indian-built ship to circumnavigate the globe in 2003-2004. The Mhadei is famous for being used for two solo Indian circumnavigation voyages in 2009-10 (by Commander Dilip Donde) and 2012-13 (by Commander Abhilash Tommy), while an all-women crew used the Tarini to complete a circumnavigation in 2017-2018.
Speaking at the ceremony, Lanba harked back to the glorious maritime traditions of India that stretched back nearly 5,000 years, noting that the oldest recorded ship dock was found at Lothal during the Indus Valley civilisation. Lanba also pointed to the sail-together event's potential to boost cooperation in forums like IONS, noting that eight “sea riders”—personnel from other nations—are sailing on the voyage.
While INS Sudarshini has embarked naval personnel from Sri Lanka, China and the UK, INS Tarangini has sailors from Australia, Bangladesh and the Maldives on board.
Lanba observed that the ships sailing to Muscat would “endeavour to retrace ancient trading routes from the coast of Malabar to Muscat”.
Speaking to THE WEEK, retired rear admiral S.Y. Shrikhande exuded confidence in the future relevance of IONS. Shrikhande, who retired from the Indian Navy in 2016, said, “IONS has made significant progress; not that it has been without challenges given a diversity of navies from diverse nations. There have been lots of opportunities for IONS in the past 10 years, many of which have seen fruition.”
Shrikhande underlined mutual benefits that arise from cooperation in IONS such as training and joint exercises and patrol missions involving member navies. While acknowledging that IONS was not a product of a formal political alliance like NATO, Shrikhande argued that this was not a setback as it was a grouping of navies that were “like-minded” on several issues.
Shrikhande concluded, "In 2028, when we review the past 20 years of IONS, I am sure there will be even more things to be positive about and be satisfied."
