Quote:NightWatch [url="http://www.kforcegov.com/Services/IS/NightWatch/NightWatch_11000163.aspx"]For the Night of 9 August 2011[/url]



Vietnam-India: Comment: In late June, Vietnamese and Indian naval senior officers met to discuss maritime security in the South China Sea. During the visit Vietnamese Vice Admiral Hien offered Indian Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Verma, base rights to the port of Nha Trang. Verma accepted in principle.



The terms of the offer have not been reported in detail, but one news service reported the Indians counter-offered the new Brahmos supersonic anti-ship missile to the Vietnamese navy; the Prithvi short-range ballistic missile which can also be used on ships; plus maintenance support to Vietnam's Soviet-supplied naval ships. India already is providing training to the Vietnamese navy.



[color="#800080"]Subsequently, the INS Airavat, an amphibious landing ship built in Calcutta, made a port call at Nha Trang between 20 and 30 July.[/color] In October 2010, Vietnam offered the Indians access to maintenance and repair facilities and invited more port calls. In 2011, Indian Navy ships have made calls at South Chinese Sea ports and Japan almost monthly since March.



For the record. Nha Trang was the base from which a Vietnamese Supreme Commander led a fleet that defeated a Chinese Yuan dynasty fleet in 1288.



Vietnam's offer appears tailored to appeal to the new Indian Naval mantra:



[color="#0000FF"]China rejects that the Indian Ocean is Indian. India rejects that the South China Sea is Chinese.[/color]



The Indian Chief of Naval Staff's acceptance of the Vietnamese offer sent Chinese national security pundits into spasms of dismissal. One expert wrote that India will never base ships at Nha Trang because it would be too expensive and India lacks the ability to extend naval power east. [color="#800080"] The Chinese national security expert accused India and Vietnam of bluffing.[/color]









India: Navy. The Calcutta Telegraph reported on 8 August that the government has asked all ports in the east coast, except Visakhapatnam, to give priority to the Indian Navy because a sharp rise in the number of warships is leading to congestion and slowing down operational turnaround. Visakhapatnam is the main base for the Eastern Naval Command.



Comment: According to the Telegraph report the government has decided to strengthen the Eastern Naval Command in reaction to Chinese meddling in the Indian Ocean, including port construction in Burma and in southern Sri Lanka.



As a result the Navy has raised the rank of senior positions in the east and increased its priority for new ship assignments. In the past 5 years the Command has received 14 ships, including five Rajput-class guided missile destroyers that had been assigned to the Western Naval Command at Mumbai. The new additions include the amphibious assault ship, INS Jalashwa, purchased from the US Navy, which is the second largest ship in the Indian Navy, after the aircraft carrier INS Viraat.



India's new indigenously constructed stealth frigates, under construction at Mumbai, will be assigned to the Eastern Naval command. The Navy is scouting at least three new locations for bases in India and seems to welcome the Vietnamese offer of port facilities.



The Indian Navy is unlikely to base ships in Vietnam, but access to a friendly port will increase the frequency of port calls to the South China Sea as well as to Japan and South Korea. India is determined to contain the Chinese in South Asian oceans and and is taking the challenge to East and Southeast Asian seas. Indian Navy ships will be frequent callers in Vietnamese ports.

[size="3"][quote name="The Hindu" date="October 2, 2011"]

MAJOR LEAP: Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma inspecting a guard of honour before commissioning INS Shakti (in the background) in Visakhapatnam on Saturday. — Photo: K. R. Deepak

---

Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma commissioned INS Shakti, a 27,550-tonne fleet tanker at a ceremony held at the Naval Dockyard here on Saturday.INS Shakti, one of Indian Navy's biggest ships and built by the Fincantieri Shipyard in Italy, can carry 15,000 tonnes of different varieties of fuel for ships and aircraft and 500 tonnes of dry cargo, including ammunition and provisions for the fleet to take up multiple ship replenishment operations simultaneously. It also has workshop facilities to provide frontline support to fleet ships and can operate heavy helicopters.



State-of-the-art



It is equipped with state-of-the-art sensors an electronic warfare suite, most of it being indigenous. It was designed to operate as a command platform, according to the Navy.



This is the second fleet tanker built by the Italian yard for the Indian Navy, the first operating on the West Coast and was delivered within nine months after the first ship.



The induction of INS Shakti signifies a new era of modern world class technologies for the Indian Navy and a major leap for the Navy as it would improve the influence of the Navy, Admiral Verma said. It also indicated the unstinting support from the government to the Navy in its capacity building exercise.



Italian Ambassador to India Giacomo Sanfelice D' Monteforte, Chief of Staff of Eastern Naval Command Vice-Admiral Sunil Lanba, Controller of Warship Production and Acquisition N.N. Kumar were among those present.



‘Double the reach'



Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Eastern Naval Command Anup Singh said INS Shakti doubled the reach and defence capabilities of the Eastern Fleet.



Building of fleet tankers indicated the special relationship his company has with India, said president of Fincantieri shipyard Corrado Antonini.



The shipyard was building important vessels for India and excellent technology was incorporated in INS Shakti and it has cutting edge systems, he said.



Commanding Officer of the ship Capt. Ravi Malhotra read out the ‘Commissioning Warrant' and the naval ensign was hoisted on board for the first time and breaking the commissioning pennant as the National Anthem was played, marked the formal commissioning of the ship.



Third tanker



INS Shakti is the third tanker of the same name, the first one of 3,000 tonnes displacement and World War II vintage in service from 1953 to 1967 and the second one was a large ship built by a German yard served the Navy for 31 years. Adm. Verma introduced to the gathering the Commanding Officers of the second ship: Vice-Admiral Narendra Singh, Commodores R.P. Singh, K.L. Ratan, N.V.S. Kumar and G.V. Babu. The last mentioned is the present CO of INS Circars.[/quote]

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Quote:China-Seychelles: China's Xinhua news agency disseminated the following report on 12 December 2011:



"China said on Monday that its naval fleet may seek supplies or recuperate at appropriate harbors in Seychelles or other countries as needed during escort missions.



"It is international practice for naval fleets to resupply at the closest port of a nearby state during long-distance missions, the Ministry of National Defense said in a press release commenting on a recent report stating that China will establish a military base in Seychelles to crack down on piracy.



"Chinese naval fleets have resupplied at harbors in Djibouti, Oman and Yemen since the country sent its first convoy to the Gulf of Aden in 2008, according to the ministry."



"Defense Minister Liang Guanglie paid an official goodwill visit to Seychelles earlier this month. During Liang's visit, the two sides exchanged views on their countries' and armies' cooperation, as well as on the global and regional situation."



"Seychelles appreciates China's efforts to maintain safe navigation on the Indian Ocean, as well as the support it has granted to Seychelles, the ministry said."



"Seychelles also invited China's navy to resupply and recuperate in the country during escort missions, the ministry said."



Comment: India has been the primary protector of the Seychelles since the emergence of the Somali pirates, who have attacked ships and craft in the Seychelles' Exclusive Economic Zone. India has trained most officers in the small defense force and provided equipment, including a naval patrol ship in 2005.



In 2009, the Indian Navy responded to a request for increased anti-piracy patrols by rotating patrol and support ships to the area, as the Somali pirates began to operate farther east into the Indian Ocean. Since January 2011 India has stationed a naval maritime patrol aircraft in the Seychelles. India has played down the suggestion that the Chinese threat is increasing or that China is encircling India.



Recent press reports indicate that the US operates a drone base in the Seychelles, providing indirect defense cover for this rich island nation and supporting US forces in Africa..



The Xinhua announcement depicts the Chinese as reluctantly responding to an unsolicited offer. That is for public consumption to allay Indian and US fears that China is again expanding its sphere of influence, which it is. No news service reported what the Chinese gave or promised the Seychelles in return.



China brags that it is the only permanent member of the UN Security Council that does not possess overseas bases. It will not build a base, but access to the Seychelles would facilitate Chinese poaching in India's Ocean as well as support for Chinese anti-piracy operations and security for oil shipments bound for China from African ports.



With the invitation to the Chinese, all major naval powers that operate in the Indian Ocean, except Japan and France, will have access to the island nation. Japan opened its naval base in Djibouti in July.

Quote:2 Jan, 2012, 10.25AM IST, TNN NEW DELHI: India will take a big step towards achieving a credible nuclear weapon triad in February when its first indigenous [url="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/nuclear-submarine"]nuclear submarine[/url] [url="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/INS-Arihant"]INS Arihant[/url] begins sea trials off Visakhapatnam.



Top defence ministry sources say the "sea-acceptance trials'' (SATS) of INS Arihant are slated to begin "towards end-February'' after the completion of its ongoing harbour-acceptance trials (HATS). "It will take at least six months of extensive SATS and missile trials before the boat is ready for commissioning into Navy,'' said a source.



With INS Arihant's induction, India for the first time will brandish the most effective third leg of the nuclear triad - the ability to fire nukes from land, air and sea. The first two legs revolve around the Agni family of ballistic missiles and fighters like Sukhoi-30 MKIs and [url="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Mirage-2000"]Mirage-2000[/url] s jury-rigged to deliver nuclear warheads . O



nly the Big-5 has nuclear triads till now, with a total of over 140 nuclear-powered submarines. America leads the pack with 71, followed by [url="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Russia"]Russia[/url] with about 40, while China, the UK and [url="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/France"]France[/url] have around 10-12 each. India did get delivery of INS Chakra, the rechristened [url="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Akula-II"]Akula-II[/url] nuclear-powered submarine 'K-152 Nerpa' , from Russia on a 10-year lease last week. But while it will bolster the country's underwater firepower, it's not armed with nuclear-tipped missiles due to international treatises.



India's nuclear triad will be in place, as Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma has declared, once INS Arihant is out at sea on "deterrent patrols'' . It has been a long journey for INS Arihant since it was "launched' ' at Vizag in July, 2009, with PM [url="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/Manmohan-Singh"]Manmohan Singh[/url] himself in attendance.



Each and every sub-system was checked and re-checked , along with high-pressure steam trials of all the pipelines, before the miniature 83 MW pressurized light-water reactor, fitted in a containment vessel on board the over 6,000-tonne INS Arihant , went "critical'' last year, said sources.



"HATS followed thereafter. Now, things are on track for SATS to begin in end-February ,'' said the source. Simultaneously , fabrication work on the three follow-on SSBNs (nuclearpowered submarines armed with nuclear ballistic missiles), dubbed S-2 , S-3 and S-4 , is in full swing under the over Rs 30,000-crore advanced technology vessel programme. The second SSBN after INS Arihant is to be named [url="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/topic/INS-Aridhaman"]INS Aridhaman[/url], both of which loosely mean "potent destroyer of enemies'' .



They are to be armed first with the 750-km K-15 and at a later stage with the under-development 3,500-km K-4 SLBMs (submarine-launched ballistic missiles). INS Arihant has four silos on its hump to carry either 12 K-15 s or four K-4 s.



Navy wants to have three SSBNs and six SSNs (nuclear-powered attack submarines) in the long term, as reported by TOI earlier. The force is grappling with a depleting conventional underwater arm, down to only 14 ageing diesel-electric submarines.



Nuclear-powered submarines can silently stay underwater for months at end, unlike conventional ones that have to surface every few days to get oxygen to recharge their batteries. India with a clear "no-first use'' nuclear doctrine needs survivable second-strike capability riding on SSBNs to ensure credible deterrence.

Quote:Published: January 14, 2012 01:31 IST | Updated: January 14, 2012 02:01 IST

S. Anandan

At a time when diminishing operational availability of its conventional submarine fleet has put the Navy in dire straits, it has some reason to cheer.



Informed sources told The Hindu that the construction of a second Arihant-class nuclear submarine, to be named INS Aridaman, is moving fast at the Shipbuilding Centre (SBC) in Visakhapatnam. It is slated for launch by this year-end or in the first quarter of next year.



“The boat, under outfitting now, is headed for a year-end launch. Meanwhile, hull fabrication is on for the third Arihant-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine,” the sources said. “Unlike surface vessels, submarines are fully outfitted before launch, which makes it a prerequisite for its weapons to be tested and ready well in advance.”



The first submarine of the class, INS Arihant, launched in July 2009, has just completed its harbour acceptance trials and is set to undergo the crucial sea acceptance trials in February.



“This will be followed by weapon trials before the submarine is formally inducted into the Navy, hopefully in 2013, when the country will attain the much-desired nuclear triad,” the sources said. Concurrently, nuclear-powered submarine INS Chakra, borrowed on a 10-year lease from Russia mainly for training purposes, will be inducted in the latter half of 2012.



Troubled by the eroding strength of its conventional underwater arm, the Navy's ‘blue water' aspirations remained in the realm of wishful thinking, with the force failing to add even a single submarine to its inventory in the last decade.



With the Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) programme to indigenously design and build nuclear-powered attack submarines gaining momentum after years of indecision and disorientation in the 1990s, the goal, claimed the sources, was within reach now.



Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma said last year that once commissioned, INS Arihant would be deployed on ‘deterrent (combat) patrol.'



Although it would be home-ported in Visakhapatnam, the submarine, armed with nuclear-tipped K-15 or B-5 ballistic missiles and having a range of about 750 km, would offer effective deterrence against Pakistan, the sources pointed out.



The missiles are developed under the Sagarika programme.



Displacing about 6,000 tonnes, the 112 metre-long Arihant-class of boomer submarines are powered by indigenously-built 80-MW nuclear power plants. Each submarine is said to store 12 K-15 missiles besides torpedoes and torpedo-launched cruise missiles.



[b]Obsolete fleet [/b]

While the ATV project is on track, the Navy finds its back against the wall having to operate a flagging fleet of Russian Kilo-class and German HDW conventional diesel-electric submarines, 14 in all, 75 per cent of which are over the hill.



“The decline in the operational availability of submarines [as low as 40 per cent] has seriously compromised the force's vital sea denial capability. The absence of Air Independent Propulsion, which obviates the need for conventional submarines to surface frequently for recharging their batteries thereby enhancing their endurance is another debilitating factor,” said the sources.

Quote:ISRAEL: Four Indian navy warships equipped with modern weaponry are on a goodwill visit to this northern coastal city of Israel to "strengthen service-to- service linkages", as the two countries celebrate 20 years of diplomatic ties this year.



INS Mumbai, Trishul, Gomti and Aditya, from Indian navy's western fleet, anchored at the Haifa coast on Monday as part of their Mediterranean tour.

The four-day visit here of the Indian navy warships, which are equipped with electronic sensors and missile systems, "shows the importance India attaches to the growing Indo-Israeli relations and continued cooperation and engagement between the two countries is expected to grow," officials here said.



"Indian warships have regularly paid visits to ports in the West Asia and East Africa reaffirming their peaceful presence and solidarity with countries in the region," they said.



The Indian navy has also been at the forefront in providing humanitarian assistance to victims of natural disaster in all parts of the world.



The Mediterranean tour of the four warships is being headed by Rear Admiral A R Karve, who will be calling upon several senior Israeli naval officers and the Mayor of Haifa, Yona Yahav.



The Indian sailors will also be paying their respects at the memorial of Indian soldiers buried in Haifa while fighting for the Allied forces in what has come to be known as the war for the liberation of Haifa.



In a rare tribute to the Indian soldiers who fought for the liberation of the city, the municipality of Haifa has decided to include the stories of their valiant efforts by incorporating them in the school curricula as part of the history textbooks.