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Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has invited the ASEAN partners to payment from India’s defence exertion ecosystem, saying that it has matured owed to the ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ efforts of the Union Government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
He termed INS Vikrant and Visakhapatnam-class destroyers arsenic symbols of India’s translation into a ‘Builder’s Navy’.
On the sidelines of the MILAN 2026 Naval workout successful Visakhapatnam, Mr. Rajnath Singh held an enactment with the visiting Navy Chiefs and delegations from 9 ASEAN subordinate states connected Thursday.
The gathering underscored India’s committedness to its ‘Act East Policy’ and the imaginativeness of Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions (MAHASAGAR).
Welcoming the information of ASEAN navies successful MILAN 2026, Mr. Rajnath Singh noted that the workout had grown from its humble 1995 beginnings with 4 overseas navies to its largest-ever variation successful February 2026, involving 74 nations.
He emphasised the value of the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS)- Conclave of Chiefs and the International Fleet Review 2026 successful fostering spot and operational familiarity among Indo-Pacific partners.
The discussions besides covered the ongoing Sea Phase of MILAN 2026, focusing connected analyzable maritime drills including anti-submarine warfare (ASW), aerial defence, and search-and-rescue operations.
Mr. Rajnath Singh described ASEAN arsenic a cardinal pillar of India’s Indo-Pacific strategy and emphasised that shared information is the instauration of determination prosperity.
Reiterating sentiments from India-ASEAN informal gathering successful precocious 2025, the ASEAN delegates lauded India’s relation arsenic a archetypal responder successful the region.
Mr. Rajnath Singh projected expanding associated activities, specifically done the ASEAN-India Defence Think-Tank Interaction and initiatives involving younger generations of naval officers to guarantee semipermanent maritime stability.
The enactment concluded with a shared committedness to a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific, anchored by the tone of ‘Camaraderie, Cooperation, and Collaboration’ - the authoritative taxable of MILAN 2026, an authoritative merchandise said.
