Chennai, Oct 15 (ANI): The US, India and Japan are holding naval exercises in the Bay of Bengal.to deepen maritime ties. Called Exercise Malabar, the exercises commenced on October 14 and will end on October 19. Exercise Malabar is an annual naval training exercise conducted by Indian and American navies. Japan is the new and third entrant. The exercise includes fighter combat operations from aircraft carriers and other manoeuvres. The Indian navy has deployed a submarine, surface ships and maritime surveillance aircraft for the six-day-long exercise. Eastern Naval Commander Vice Admiral Bimal Kumar Verma said earlier that the first two days of the exercise would be confined to the harbour and would include interaction between ship crew, lectures and presentations. India and the US have been conducting Exercise Malabar since 1992. Commander of the US Seventh Fleet, Joseph P Aucoin said India and the United States shared common interests in several areas and both would continue to improve their abilities to execute those missions.
