The Indian Navy destroyer INS Kolkata steams in the North Arabian Sea during Malabar 2020. Malabar 2020 is the latest in a continuing series of exercises that has grown in scope and complexity over the years to address the variety of shared threats to maritime security in the Indo-Pacific where the U.S. Navy has patrolled for more than 70 years promoting regional peace and security. Nimitz Carrier Strike Group is currently deployed to the 7th Fleet area of operations in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Drace Wilson)
By Sudhi Ranjan Sen
Mar 24, 2025 (Bloomberg) –India will hold naval drills with several African nations, the first maritime exercise of this kind, as it tries to counter China’s assertive presence in the Indian Ocean region.
As many as 10 countries — including Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Mozambique and Madagascar — will participate in the drills, which start from April 11, Tarun Sobti, India’s deputy chief of naval staff, told reporters in New Delhi on Monday. The exercise is divided into several phases, including live fire drills, he added.
New Delhi is hoping to shore up its influence in Africa at a time when China’s financial links with the continent keep strengthening. The South Asian nation is also alarmed by Beijing’s growing military presence in the Indian Ocean region, where China has been sending warships on training and anti-piracy missions while winning access to key naval bases.
By partnering with countries such as Mozambique and Madagascar — home to crucial shipping lanes — India hopes to counter some of China’s dramatic advances in the region in the last decade.
Increasing interaction and engagement with Africa is part of India’s foreign policy, said Sobti. Countries from Africa’s west coast will be invited in the next edition of the biannual naval exercise, he added.
© 2025 Bloomberg L.P.
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