India will join US and Japan conduct joint naval exercises in the northern waters of the Philippine Sea, an area close to the East and South China Seas where Beijing is locked in an increasingly tense standoff with other countries.
The multinational maritime exercise in the strategically important South China Sea, which will also have the Japan, Russia, Australia and China along with other countries as participants.
IANS quoted an official statement said it is part of the Indian Navy’s endeavour to "enhance maritime security in the Indo-Pacific".
The exercise is a multinational exercise on maritime security and counterterrorism under the aegis of ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus, or ADMM Plus consortium.
Indian Naval Ship (INS) Airavat has already reached Brunei.
The participants of the exercise, to be held in Brunei, include Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Myanmar and South Korea. It is being held at the South China Sea.
The current edition will commence at Brunei and culminate at Singapore, with various drills and exercises in the South China Sea.
"Indian Navy and the navies of ASEAN countries have a mutual interest in promoting peace and prosperity in the Indian Ocean and the Western Pacific, given our shared maritime security interests," the statement said.
The statement added the exercise is aimed at enhancing mutual understanding with respect to maritime security issues and streamlining drills on counter-terrorism operations at sea.