Second India – Australia – Indonesia Trilateral Maritime Security Workshop (TMSW) Conducted at Kochi

The second edition of the India, Australia, Indonesia Trilateral Maritime Security Workshop (TMSW) took place from 15 to 17 May 24 at INS Dronacharya, Kochi, India. The workshop’s theme was ‘Indian Ocean Region: Collaborative Efforts to Enhance Regional Maritime Security’, chosen to address ongoing maritime security challenges and explore opportunities for collaboration between the three maritime neighbours in the region. The event was organised under the aegis of Headquarters Southern Naval Command and featured delegates from the navies of the three participating countries.

The workshop was presided over by Rear Admiral Nirbhay Bapna, ACNS (FCI), and co-chaired by Commodore Paul O’Grady, Commodore Flotillas from the Royal Australian Navy, Vice Admiral Heri Triwibowo, Assistant for Operations to CIC Indonesian Fleet Command from TNI (AL), and Commodore Manmeet S Khurana, Commodore (Foreign Cooperation) from the Indian Navy. Discussions covered a wide array of topics, including current opportunities and challenges in the Indian Ocean Region, information exchange mechanisms, capabilities of IFC-IOR, maritime domain awareness, non-traditional and illicit maritime activities, maritime law enforcement, capability enhancement and capacity building, as well as avenues for enhancing interoperability and cooperation.

During the workshop, talks were also delivered by Rear Admiral Upal Kundu, Chief of Staff, Headquarters Southern Naval Command, and Rear Admiral Susheel Menon, Flag Officer of Sea Training.

The delegates from the Australian and Indonesian navies were also given the opportunity to visit Indian naval training facilities at Kochi and the Cochin Shipyard Limited.