Indian Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma on Friday said India prefered to work together with other countries of the Indian Ocean region rather than assuming a leadership role, reported the local daily The Hindu on Saturday.
Verma said that India wanted to come together with other countries "on a constructive level" instead of "coming in as a headmaster," when he addressed a seminar at a multilateral naval exercise at the Indian Andaman and Nicobar Islands southeast off the Bay of Bengal, said the report.
He was responding to a question on how India would react to an assumption made by the U.S. Defense Department recently that Indian Navy could have greater security role in the Indian Ocean region, according to the report.
Nine foreign ships and delegations from 12 countries including Australia, Brunei, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam arrived in Andaman and Nicobar Islands Wednesday for the seventh edition of the joint naval exercise.
The participants held "operational interaction" and "table-top exercise" for joint planning aimed at building mutual confidence and improving inter-operability in dealing with piracy, arms and drug running and illegal migration, said the report.
Participants also had a seminar with the theme of "Navies in Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Operations," according to the report.
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