First Indo-Japan naval exercise on June 9

India and Japan will be holding their first ever bilateral naval exercise in China's backyard on June 9-10. The exercise comes as India is warming up to Japan despite China fretting over New Delhi's this Look East policy.

(File Photo: INS Shivalik)

The decision to hold a bilateral exercise was taken at Defence Minister A K Antony to Japan last year in November.

Update on the components will follow soon.

(Update - The Indian Navy's flotilla consists of newly inducted stealth frigate INS Shivalik, destroyer INS Rana,  tanker INS Shakti and missile corvette INS Karmuk. These four are presently on two-month long deployment to countries around South East Asia and have already paid port calls at Singapore and Vietnam. They are presently conducting exercise with South Korean counterparts and on their return journey from Japan, they would also be visiting Shanghai in China and Malaysia.

The exercise is significant as both the countries have decided to take their bilateral defence ties ahead despite concerns raised by China. India has been treading this path cautiously. So much so that it decided against making the Malabar naval exercise a multi-lateral war game including Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force after China registered a strong protest against the perceived grouping against it.

The decision to hold its first bilateral exercise was taken during Defence Minister AK Antony’s visit to Japan as both New Delhi and Tokyo asserted the need for “freedom of navigation and maintaining the security of Seal Lanes of Communication (SLOCS)”.

China has been watching this warming up of defence ties between the two countries, as China had Japan have disputes in the maritime domain like the ownership of the East China Sea islands.  The islands are controlled by Japan, but also claimed by China. Relations between China and Japan hit a low point after Japanese coast guards arrested a fishing boat captain near the Senkaku islands in September 2010 following a collision. The prized interest in the region seems to be the gas reserves near Okinawa island.

(Defence Minister AK Antony last year)

In fact, in the face of an assertive China in South China Sea, India has also sought to send a strong message by developing stronger ties with Vietnam and Japan. In Japan Antony had said: “India supports freedom of Navigation in international waters and the rights of passage in accordance with accepted principles of international law, including the United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea [UNCLOS].  These principles should be respected by all.”)