India to inaugurate MILAN 2026 multilateral naval exercise in Visakhapatnam

Key facts

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will formally inaugurate MILAN 2026 on Thursday at the Samudrika Auditorium inside the Naval Base in Visakhapatnam.
• Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi will attend the inauguration.
• Vice Admiral Sanjay Bhalla, Commander-in-Chief of the Eastern Naval Command, inaugurated the MILAN Village on 15 February.
• The harbour phase of MILAN 2026 began on Wednesday with cultural performances and a formal dinner for delegates.
• A two-day international maritime seminar starts on Thursday ahead of the official inauguration.
• The sea phase of MILAN 2026 is scheduled from 21 February to 25 February.
• The exercise aims to enhance interoperability, strengthen maritime domain awareness, and conduct advanced drills in anti-submarine warfare, air defence, and search-and-rescue operations.
• MILAN 2026 has drawn participation from 70 nations, up from 42 nations in the 2022 edition.
• Initiated by the Indian Navy in 1995, MILAN is a biennial multilateral naval engagement that began with Indonesia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.
• The inaugural edition was held at Port Blair in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• The venue was shifted to Visakhapatnam in 2020 due to its more extensive and advanced naval infrastructure.
• MILAN originally aligned with India’s ‘Look East Policy’ and later became part of the ‘Act East’ policy and the SAGAR vision.