Malabar-'06 exercise underway

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NEW DELHI, Oct. 31 (UPI) -- The Indian, U.S. and Canadian navies are holding the Malabar-'06 military exercise in the Arabian Sea.

The trilateral exercise comes in the wake of the Leading Edge exercise currently underway in the Persian Gulf.

India-Defence reported Oct. 27 that Indian and U.S. warships and submarines are participating in joint drills, which include a "simulated war at sea," off the country's western coast.

A Canadian frigate is also participating in Malabar-'06.

Exercises slated for Malabar-'06 include anti-submarine operations, search and boarding drills and search and rescue operations.

An Indian Navy statement stated that the exercise, the eighth in an annual series of bilateral U.S.-Indian maritime operations, includes air operations, sea control missions to prevent piracy and terrorism at sea and a "simulated war at sea."

The 10-day exercise includes over 6,500 U.S. Navy personnel from the USS Boxer Expeditionary Strike Group operating in tandem with warships of the Indian Navy's Western Fleet.

In the capital New Delhi the U.S. Embassy said in a statement: "The purpose of the multi-national exercise, which focuses on a number of naval mission areas, is to strengthen ties between American, Canadian and Indian forces as well as enhance the cooperative security relationship between the nations involved."