THE INS Kadmatt of the Indian Navy, an anti-submarine warship, is currently in here in the Philippines.
The two-day goodwill visit by the Indian Navy is part of their regional tour in the Indo-Pacific.
The Philippine Navy, led by Vice Commander Rear Adm. Caesar Bernard Valencia, warmly welcomed Indian counterparts.
As part of their visit, a maritime partnership exercise took place between the Indian warship and the Philippine Navy’s BRP Ramon Alcaraz.
“We’ve been having Indian Navy ships visit the Philippines regularly because it’s important that we walk the talk when it comes to engagement between our navies. We should have our navy ships engage with each other, have training exchanges, operational exchanges,” according to Shambhu S. Kumaran, Ambassador, Embassy of India.
“I think it’s important to have these operational exchanges because we grow when we work together,” Kumaran added.
Philippines, India to strengthen maritime security engagement
Indian Ambassador to the Philippines Shambu Kumaran emphasized that New Delhi’s priority is the Indo-Pacific, with the Philippines at the center of this region.
He highlighted the ongoing strengthening of relations between the Philippines and India in 2024.
“We have a shared interest in peace and stability of the region, a lot of complementarities. So you will expect that India will continue a strong navy and maritime security engagement,” he said.
The last visit of India’s INS Kadmatt to the Philippines was in October 2017.
