IAF Moves Jaguars To Car Nicobar, Navy Conducts Exercise With US Warships To Send Clear Message To China

The Indian Navy is all set to conduct a joint exercise with United States aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and its accompanying warships near the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago which is expected to send a strong strategic signal to China, Times of India has reported.

These exercises will be conducted today and tomorrow.

As per senior defence journalist Nitin Gokhale, The Indian Air Force had also moved half a squadron of Jaguar fighter jets to the Car Nicobar island in the last fortnight as a way of sending a message to China.

The two navies will conducted a PASSEX (passing exercise) with the USS Nimitz - which had earlier conducted a mega exercise in the South China Sea, entering the Indian Ocean after crossing the Malacca Strait on Saturday (18 July).

USS Nimitz and USS Ronald Regan had recently conduced one of US Navy's biggest exercises in recent years amid objections by China.

This Indo-US joint exercise led by eastern naval fleet commander Rear Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan will involve various Indian warships including destroyers, submarines, frigates and patrol aircraft.

USS Nimitz is accompanied by two US destroyers and two supply ships with its next destination being the western Indian Ocean.

This exercise will be conducted in the naval region which is dotted with China’s critical sea trade routes.

This exercise by the Indian Navy comes at a time when the Indian Armed Forces are locked in a Chinese initiated stand-off along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Just last week the Indian Navy had conducted a series of manoeuvres off the Andaman Nicobar Islands and had participated in a PASSEX with the Japanese Navy last month.