What is a Military Exercise?

It is a military operation that aims to demonstrate operational capabilities and preparedness.

• The objective of military exercises can vary. It can be to show:
  1. Disaster Response Preparedness.
  2. Preparedness against terrorist attacks.
  3. Preparedness against the military threat.
  4. To demonstrate coordination and interoperability between various armed forces.
• Domestic exercises are those which are done by the Indian armed forces.
• Such exercises can involve one, two or all services of the armed forces. Those exercises which involve all three services of the armed forces are known as Trilateral exercises.

Joint Military Exercises

• Joint Military exercises are those which are done in participation with other countries.
• Joint military exercises can be of two types mainly:
  1. Bilateral Exercises,
  2. Multilateral Exercises.
• Depending on the participating organ of the forces, exercises can be:
  1. Military Exercises,
  2. Naval Exercises,
  3. Air Exercise,
  4. Bi-service or tri-service exercises aim to display coordination between different military organs.
• PASSEXs or Passage exercises :

1. 1. These joint exercises are held with the naval ships passing through important waters.
   2. PASSEX is a US Navy terminology.
   3. It ensures that the countries can communicate and cooperate during waror humanitarian relief.
   4. India has held several of these with the USA, Russia and other countries.

• Humanitarian Aid & Disaster Relief (HADR): HADR are the exercises that Indian armed forces and Disaster response forces conduct to rescue civilians or demonstrate the capacities to conduct such operations. Joint military exercises can be HADR exercises.

List of India’s Joint Military Exercises:

Bilateral Exercises

 

Sl. No.	Country	Exercise	Periodicity
1.	Australia	AUSINDEX	Biennial
2.	Bangladesh	IN-BN BILAT	Annual
3.	Bangladesh	IN-BN SF Exercise	Annual
4.	France	VARUNA	Annual
5.	Indonesia	IND-INDO BILAT	Annual
6.	Japan	JIMEX	Biennial
7.	Malaysia	IN-RMNBILAT	Biennial
8.	Maldives	Ex Ekatha	Annual
9.	Myanmar	IN-MN BILAT	Annual
10.	Oman	IN-RNOBILAT	Biennial
11.	Qatar	IN-QENFBILAT	Biennial
12.	Russia	INDRA Navy	Biennial
13.	Saudi Arabia	IN-RSNF Bilateral	Annual
14.	Singapore	SIMBEX	Annual
15.	Sri Lanka	SLINEX	Annual
16.	Sri Lanka	IN-SLN SF Ex	Annual
17.	UAE	IN-UAENBILAT	Biennial
18.	UK	KONKAN	Annual
19.	USA	Ex Sangam  (SF)	Annual
20.	USA	SALVEX (Salvage)	Annual
21.	Vietnam	IN-VPN BILAT	Annual

 

Multilateral Exercises

1.	Australia (lead), Multilateral	KAKADU	Biennial
2.	India (lead), Multilateral	MILAN	Biennial
3.	Indonesia (lead), Multilateral	KOMODO	Biennial
4.	IONS Member Nations	IONS Exercise	Annual
5.	Israel (lead), Multilateral	Mighty Shield	Annual
6.	Japan, USA	EOD Ex 2-JA	Annual
7.	USA (lead), Multilateral	CUTLASS Express	Annual
8.	USA (lead), Multilateral	IMX	Annual
9.	US, SE Asian countries, France, Australia	WPNS	Annual
10.	USA (lead), Multilateral	RIMPAC	Biennial
11.	USA (lead), Multilateral	Sea Dragon	Annual
12.	Australia (lead), Multilateral	Black Carillion	Annual
13.	Australia, Japan, US	MALABAR	Annual
14.	France (lead), US, Japan, Australia, India	La Perouse	Annual
15.	Singapore, Thailand	SITMEX	Annual
16.	Brazil, South Africa	IBSAMAR	Biennial
17.	Singapore, SE Asian States	MARISX	Biennial
18.	US, SE, and Asian countries	SEACAT	Annual
19.	India, Bhutan, Bangladesh & Sri Lanka	SHANTIROGROSENA	[Not yet clear]

 

Tri-Service Exercises

Those exercises which involve all three services of the armed forces are known as Trilateral exercises.

1.	ADMM Plus countries	ADMM Plus	As Scheduled
2.	Russia	INDRA (Tri-Service)	Biennial
3.	Russia	VOSTOK	Annual
4.	Thailand	Ex Cobra Gold	Annual
5.	USA	Ex Tiger Triumph	Annual

 

Domestic Exercises by India:

India often hosts various exercises; wherein multiple countries participate. Some of them are MILAN, MALABAR and MAITRI and so on.

MILAN:

A biennial multilateral naval exercise hosted by Indian Navy in 1995 at Andaman and Nicobar Command.

• It is held regularly except for 2001, 2016 and 2020.
• The next edition of Milan will be held in 2024.
• It is in accordance with India’s ‘Act East policy and the SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) initiative.
• It also includes the participation from island nations in the Western IOR and IOR littorals.
• Participants:
  • Only 4 countries, viz Indonesia, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand, participated in the 1995 edition.
  • Participation increased from 6 regional countries to 18 countries in 2014, including IOR littorals.

 

MILAN – 2022   The latest edition of MILAN commenced on 25th February 2022. 40 countries participated in MILAN 2022. There will be warships from 15 countries, including Quad, France, Myanmar, South Korea, Vietnam, and several others, at Visakhapatnam (‘City of Destiny’).   Russia, Iran, Israel and Saudi Arabia participated in the exercise without ships.  The US joined the exercise for the first time.   Collaborative theme: ‘Camaraderie – Cohesion – Collaboration’.

 

• Importance of MILAN exercise:

1. It will help in increasing India’s diplomatic outreach.
2. There is always a need to cooperate on issues of common interest, such as anti-piracy, HADR missions, maritime security etc., so in this regard, MILAN exercise can be a suitable way forward.
3. It enhances inter-operability, cooperation and mutual understanding between maritime forces.

Indian Army Joint Exercises with World Powers:

Indo-Russia Join military exercises:

• INDRA: Indo-Russia Joint Military Exercise is a biennial exercise Initiated in 2003.
  • The 12th edition of INDRA was held in 2021 in Prudboy Ranges, Volgograd.
  • Aim: to increase interoperability between the two navies and exhibit a common understanding and procedures for maritime security operations.

• • Scope of the exercise: wide-ranging professional interactions in the harbour phase and a diverse canvas of operational activities during the maritime phase.
  • INDRA NAVY’s 11th edition of the annual bilateral maritime exercise between the Indian Navy and Russia was held in the Bay of Bengal.

• AVIA INDRA(2018): Exercise Aviaindra is an Air Force-level exercise between India and Russia.

• • It is a bi-annual
  • The exercise was conducted at Lipetsk, Russia, from 17 to 28th September 18 and will be conducted in Jodhpur, India, from 10th December to 22nd December 18.

Indo-China Join military exercises:

• Hand-in-Hand:

The most recent Hand-in-Hand exercise was conducted at Umroi(Meghalaya).

• Aim: sharing the expertise in drills and practices while tackling insurgency and terrorism and thereby promoting healthy military-to-military relations between India and China.

• S. C.O. Peace Mission: It is conducted biennially for SCO member states.
  • Aim: To enhance counterterror cooperation among the eight SCO member countries.
  • 5th edition(2018): India and Pak participated for the first time after joining SCO; this was the first-ever joint exercise between the 2 countries.
  • 6th edition(2020): About 10,000 military personnel of the SCO member countries participated in this, which was to be held in Russia in August.
• KAVKAZ-2020 or Caucasus-2020: The exercise took place at Astrakhan in Southern Russia from 15th September to 26, including China, Pakistan and Turkey, apart from other SCO member states.
  • India has withdrawn its participation in Kavkaz 2020(multinational), citing logistics difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • This was against the backdrop of the Chinese aggression on Indian borders.

Exercises with USA and other Quad Nations

• Yudh Abhyas: It has been a Joint military training exercise between India and USA annually since 2005.
  1. Aim: to exchange best Tactics, practices, Techniques and Procedures between the two nations’ Armies.
  2. The 18^thedition of the Indo – US joint training exercise “YUDH ABHYAS 22” was conducted in Uttarakhand.
• Tarkash: This military Exercise was conducted by the national security guard and the US special operations forces from 16th January to 14 th February 2023.

For the 1 st time, the exercise against nuclear bioterrorist attacks has been conducted.

• Malabar: it is a Quad Navel Exercise held in August 2023, Between the S.A., India, Japan and Australia.

1. Exercise Malabar is a naval exercise involving the United States and India.
2. In 1992, a PASSEX began between India and USA, which later became Malabar Exercise. Malabar was put on hold in 1998 due to India’s nuclear tests but was resumed in 2002.
3. Since 2003 it has been multidimensional: Surface, Sub-surface and Air.
4. Japan joined in 2008.
5. In 2020, frontline warships from India, Australia, Japan and the US teamed up off the coast of Visakhapatnam in the Bay of Bengal to carry out advanced manoeuvres, including surface, anti-submarine and anti-air warfare operations, cross-deck flying, seamanship evolutions and weapon firing exercises.
6. This is the first time since 2007 that the four countries have been together in the Malabar naval exercise.
7. While the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) between the four has no military dimension, they are now teaming up to exercise together under the Malabar banner.
8. Next Edition: The next edition of the Malabar will be held in Australia for the first time in August 2023.

• Passage Exercise(PASSEX,2020): Conducted by the Indian Navy with various countries like the USA, Russia, France, Japan etc., in the transiting zones of the Indian Ocean region.
• Vajra Prahar(2022): The 13th edition was held in Balokh (HP) in August 2022. It is held every year alternatively in India and the US, respectively.
• RIMPAC: It is the Largest Biennial US-led multilateral Navel exercise.

• 1. In 2022,28 countries participated in Hawaii.
  2. China was removed in 2018 because of the recent militarisation of islands in the South China Sea.

Note   SINKAC is a US Navy Sinking a Ship each year to test its weapons.

 

• AUS-IND-EX: it is a biennial Naval exercise between the Indian and Australian Navy. Held as a part of Naval deployment in the South China Sea and surrounding areas. The last edition was held in 2021.

Exercises with S. Korea & Japan

• DHARMA GUARDIAN: It has been an annual platoon-level joint training event between India and Japan since 2018 for Counter insurgency operations.
  1. The scope of this exercise covers training on operations in jungle and semi-urban/urban terrain.
  2. Aim: To enhance inter-operability in the planning & execution of various operations in jungle & semi-urban/ urban terrain.
  3. The 2018 and 2019 editions were held in Mizoram.
  4. DHARMA GUARDIAN-2023: the 4th edition of the exercise was held in Imazu in Shiga province, Japan.
• EXERCISE SHINYUU MAITRI(2023): It is an India and Japan Joint Air Exercise.
  1. The Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Japan Air Self Defence Force (JASDF) participated in the exercise on the side-lines of the Indo-Japan Joint Army Exercise, Dharma Guardian, in Feb 2023.
  2. It was the first edition of the exercise.
• JIMEX (2023): It is a bilateral naval exercisebetween the Indian Navy and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).
  1. It aims to enhance interoperability and cooperation between the two navies in maritime security, counter-terrorism, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) operations.
• Sahyog Exercises:
  1. Sahyog–Hyeobleedog(2018): It was a Defence exercise between the India coast Guard and South Korea that was held off the coast of Chennai In April.
     • Aim: Anti Piracy, search and rescue.
  2. Sahyog-Kaijin(2020): it was a Joint Exercise of the Coast Guards of India and Japan Off the coast of Chennai In Jan 2020.
• The “Shinyuu Maitri” is the joint Air Force Exercise that was held in October 2019 for the first time.

European powers

1.    UK:

• KONKAN: It is a bilateral Naval Exercise between the Indian Navy and the Royal Navy of Britain. It was institutionalised in 2004.
  1. Konkan 2023 was held from 20  to 22nd March 23 off the Konkan coast in the Arabian Sea.
• Indradhanush: it is a ‘Base defence and force protection’ jointair
  1. Latest edition: it was held in Hindon air base (Ghaziabad) in February 2023.
• ‘Ex Cobra Warrior’: It is a multilateral air exercise held twice a year. It is the largest exercise hosted by Britain’s Royal Air Force.
  1. 2022 Edition: For the first time, I.A.F. deployed the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (L.C.A.) Tejas.
  2. March 2023 Edition: The Exercise was conducted from 6-24 March 2023.
  3. Air Forces from Finland, Sweden, South Africa, the USA and Singapore participated alongside Royal Air Force and IAF.
• “AJEYA WARRIOR – 2023”:

1. 1. It is a biennial training event with the United Kingdom, conducted alternatively in the United Kingdom and India.
   2. The current edition is the 7 th one, which took place at Salisbury Plain in the united kingdom.

2.    France:

• BILATERAL NAVAL EXERCISE – VARUNA –
  1. Exercise Varuna-23 (the 21st edition) was conducted on the Western Seaboard in Jannuary 2023.
  2. It is the longest-held Exercise between India and France since 2001.
• BILATERAL NAVAL EXERCISE – GARUNA –
  1. Garuda-22 is the 7th edition of the India-France Air Exercise.

• BILATERAL MILITARY EXERCISE – SHAKTI – the latest 6th edition of this India-France exercise took place in France.

3.    Poland

Anaconda 2016 – it is a 10-day long, started in Poland, the largest Training exercise of the Polish Armed Force.

India’s Military exercises with ASIAN COUNTRIES:

India’s Military Joint Exercises with Neighbours:

Sri Lanka:

1. 1. Mithra Shakti: A joint military exercise between the Indian Army and the Sri Lankan Army.
   2. SLINEX-9(Sri Lanka–India Naval Exercise)
      • held since 2005(almost biennially)in Sri Lanka’s Trincomalee.
      • 2020: The 8th edition was conducted off Trincomalee in October 2020.
      • 2022(9th Edition): it will be held in two phases:

1. 1. 1. 1. The Harbour Phase at Visakhapatnam would include professional, cultural, sporting and social exchanges.
         2. Sea Phase in the Bay of Bengal: It included surface and anti-air weapon firing exercises, seamanship evolutions, aviation operations including cross-deck flying, advanced tactical manoeuvres and special forces operations at sea.

SIGNIFICANCE:

• This will enhance interoperability between the two navies.
• This will also improve mutual understanding and exchange between both navies.
• It is in consonance with India’s ‘Neighbourhood First‘ policy and SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) initiative, which is a prominent vision of the Hon’ble PM of India.

NEPAL

Surya Kiran: It is a battalion-level joint military exercise held alternatively in Nepal & India biannually. It is the most extensive training exercise in terms of troop participation from India. It aims to:

1. To conduct battalion-level joint training with an emphasis on Counter Terrorism in mountainous terrain.
2. Aspects of Disaster Management have also been included in the exercise as per UN mandate.

Bangladesh:

1. 1. Sampriti: It is a joint military exercise between Bangladesh and India held alternatively in both countries with the aim of counter-terrorist operations.
   2. SHANTIR–OGROSENA – 2021: it is a 10-day-long multinational military exercise conducted in April 2021 at Bangabandhu Sena–nibs (BBS), Bangladesh.
      • Peace Keeping Operations jointly undertaken by contingents of the Indian Army, Royal Bhutanese Army, Sri Lankan Army and Bangladesh Army, preceded by an Army Chiefs Conclave.
      • Observers from the USA, UK, Russia, Turkey, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Singapore
      • Aim: To strengthen defence ties and enhance interoperability amongst neighbourhood countries to ensure effective peacekeeping operations. The Armies of all participating nations shared their wide experiences and enhanced their situational awareness through robust information exchange platforms.

Seychelles :

Lamitiye: It is a biennial training event conducted in Seychelles since 2001.

• The 9th Joint Military Exercise between the Indian Army and Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF) was conducted at Seychelles Defence Academy (SDA) in March 2022.
• ‘Lamitye’ in the local dialect (‘Creole‘) means friendship.
• From India, Gurkha rifles participated in 2022.

Maldives :

Ekuverin: The Exercise is a 14-day platoon-level joint military exercise between the Indian Army and the Maldives National Defence Force conducted yearly for counter-terrorist operations.

• The 12th edition of this exercise took place in Chaubatia, Uttarakhand.
• Ekuverin meaning ‘Friends’, is a bilateral annual exercise conducted alternatively in India and Maldives.

Importance of the Exercise:

• The exercise will enhance synergy & interoperability in conducting Counter Terrorism & Counter Insurgency Operations and sharing best military practices.
• Besides rigorous training, it includes cultural and sports activities to enhance defence cooperation and bilateral relations.

 

India’s Military Exercises with ASEAN Countries

1. FORCE 18: it is a multinational Field Training Exercise held in Pune involving ASEAN Plus
   • It is one of the Largest ever field foreign military exercises hosted by India.
2. Maitree: it is an Indo-Thailand Military Exercise (since 2006) to exchange skills and experiences between the two armies.
3. Vinbax-I: The 3rd edition of the Vietnam-India bilateral Army exercise “Ex VINBAX 2022” is conducted at Chandimandir, Haryana.
4. Harimau Shakti: it is an annual training event between the Indian and Malaysian Army. It has been conducted since 2012.
5. Bold Kurukshetra: It is bilateral armour exercise held between Singapore and Indian Army. The 13^th edition of the Exercise was held a bilateral armour exercise from 06-13 March 2023, at Jodhpur Military Station, India.
6. Gurada Shakti: it is a Military exercise between India and Indonesia held in Indonesia.
7. ‘Samudra Shakti-2023’: The 4th edition of bilateral naval exercise Samudra Shakti between India and Indonesia was conducted from 14 to 19th May 2023.
   • INS Kavaratti participated from the Indian side in this exercise session.
8. KOMODO:
   • This naval exercise was organised from 4-8 June 2023.
   • INS Satpura participated from the Indian side in this exercise.
   • In this Exercise, Indonesia invited 47 countries, including countries with major naval powers such as the United States and India.
9. First ASEAN India Maritime Exercise AIME-2023:
   • It was held in Singapore from 2 to 8 th May 2023 for the first time.
   • Indian naval ships, INS Satpura and INS Delhi participated in the first ASEAN India Maritime Exercise.

Multi-Nation Joint Military exercise with Asian countries:

• SIMBEX 2020 – it is an annual trilateral naval exercise between India, the Republic of Singapore and the Thailand Navy.
  • It was held in November 2020 in the Andaman Sea.
  • Earlier, it was a bilateral exercise between India and Singapore.
• ‘Orion war games:
  1. The multinational war game Orion was conducted in France from 17th April to 5th May 2023.
  2. It is the largest air force exercise in the world.
• ‘Desert flag-VIII’:

1. 1. This war exercise was organised from 27th February to 17th March 2023.
   2. Indigenously built fighter jet LCA Tejas participated for the first time in the exercise.
   3. It is a multilateral air force exercise in which air forces from India, UAE, France, Kuwait, Australia, the UK, Bahrain, Morocco, Spain, South korea and the USA participated.

India’s Joint military exercises with Gulf Countries

Saudi Arabia :

AL-MOHED AL-HINDI-2023(2 nd edition):

• It is a naval exercise between India and Saudi Arabia that was organised from 21-25 May 2023.
• INS Tarkash and INS Subhadra, and IN Dornier, maritime patrol aircraft, participated in the exercise.

Oman

• EXERCISE EASTERN BRIDGE -VI (2022):
  1. It is an Indo-Oman exercise conducted successfully at Air Force Station Jodhpur from 21 to 25th February 2022.
  2. Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO) participated with Indian Air Force (lAF).
  3. Aim: providing operational exposure and undertaking mutual exchange of best practices towards enhancing the operational capabilities of both the Air Forces.
• Naseem Al Bahr is a Joint navy exercise of India and Oman.
• Nagah II is a counter-terrorism Military exercise between India and Oman.

Desert Eagle-1: It is a Bilateral Air force Exercise between India and UAE, held in UAE.

Cutless Express: INS Trikand participated in this exercise in the Gulf region from 26th February to 16th March 2023.

 

India’s Joint military exercises with Central Asian Countries

Kazakhstan:

PRABAL DOSTYK VI (2022): It is a joint Indian and Kazakhstan Army exercise held in Karaganda region of Kazakhstan.

Mongolia:

1. 1. Nomadic Elephant: The 15th edition of India-Mongolia bilateral joint military exercise “NOMADIC ELEPHANT-23” was conducted at Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from 17 to 31st July 2023. It is conducted alternatively in Mongolia and India.
   2. “EX Khan Quest 2023″:

• • • The multinational peacekeeping joint exercise “X Khan Quest 2023”, involving military contingents and observers from over 20 countries, was held in Mongolia from 20th June to 2nd July.
    • A contingent of the Garhwal Rifles represents the Indian Army.

Uzbekistan:

Dustlink 2023:This exercise was held in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand.

Kyrgyztan:

“Khanjar-X“: The 10^th edition of the India-Kyrgyz Special Forces Exercise Khanjar concluded in Bishkek on 18^th March 2023.

Other exercises :

• The 7th edition of IBSAMAR, a joint multinational maritime exercise among the Indian, Brazilian and South African navies, was held at Port Gqeberha (also known as Port Elizabeth), South Africa, from 10 to 12th October 22.

 

India’s Internal Military Exercises:

Exercise Buland Bharat:

• It was held in Arunachal Pradesh.
• This training took place amidst high and dense hills near the Line of Actual Control to respond to China’s tactics.

Exercise’ Sudarshan Shakti’:

• The Sapta Shakti Command (South Western Command) of the Indian Army conducted exercise ‘Sudarshan Shakti 2023″ along the western borders of Rajasthan and Punjab from 22 to 25th May 2023.

Operation Alert:

• BSF’s security exercise was held in Kutch in Gujrat and Barmer in Rajasthan in January 2023.