INS Sunayna, designated as Indian Ocean Ship-IOS SAGAR ship, yesterday entered the Port of Dar-es-Salaam in Tanzania. The ship had sailed from Karwar, Goa, on 5th of this month with 44 naval personnel from nine Friendly Foreign nations (FFN) of the Indian Ocean Region, embarked as part of the ship’s crew. The FFN include Comoros, Kenya, Madagascar, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Sri Lanka and South Africa.

 

During this port call, the ship will participate in the harbour phase of Exercise AIKEYME, a key naval exercise which will be inaugurated by the Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth today. The exercise will focus on enhancing operational coordination, refining joint strategies and improving interoperability in maritime operations. Two of the Indian Navy ships, INS Chennai and INS Kesari, will also be participating in the exercise alongside INS Sunayna.

 

 

The participation of personnel from FFNs onboard INS Sunayna further underscores the significance of this initiative in promoting global maritime cooperation. Through such exercises and engagements, the Indian Navy remains committed to advancing collective maritime security, fostering goodwill and ensuring the free and safe movement of shipping lanes in the region. The ship will depart Dar-es-Salaam on the 15th of this month for the next port of call, Nacala in Mozambique, to continue with the IOS SAGAR mission.