KOCHI. Two Sri Lankan Navy ships, SLNS Sagara and Suranimila, commanded by Captain NMJD Nissanka, RWP, RSP and Captain MHCJ Silva respectively, are visiting Kochi from October 08 – 11, 2018. The Commanding Officers called on Rear Admiral RJ Nadkarni, VSM, Chief of Staff, Southern Naval Command on October 9, 2018 and discussed issues of foreign cooperation between the two Navies, especially those pertaining to training. The Commanding Officers also interacted with other Flag Officers in station.

During the visit to Kochi, the Sri Lankan Navy personnel visited Indian Navy training facilities viz. Navigation and Direction School, Anti Submarine Warfare School, Signal School, Water Survival Training Facility, Damage Control Training Facility, Dronacharya, and the School of Naval Oceanography and Meteorology. A friendly football match was also conducted between the IN and SLN personnel.

India’s bilateral relations with Sri Lanka are rooted in historical social and cultural ties and extensive people-to-people contact. In the past two decades, with regular exchanges of visits as well as increased trade and investment, India’s relations with Sri Lanka have evolved into a comprehensive partnership.

Being immediate maritime neighbours, the two nations and navies also share a common vision in promoting maritime cooperation in the Bay of Bengal region, as is evident through the SLN’s regular participation in the MILAN series of biennial meets and Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS). The scope of training cooperation between the two navies is extensive. Last month also witnessed the latest edition of SLINEX (Sri Lanka India Naval exercise) – a bilateral exercise involving ships of both navies.

The SLN ships would depart AM 11 Oct 18 for Colombo, and a Passage Exercise (PASSEX) is also planned with an IN ship on departure.