EU and Indonesian warships conduct first naval drill in Arabian Sea

On 14 and 15 August, the European Union (EU) and Indonesia conducted their first joint naval exercise in the Arabian Sea. 

The exercise involved Indonesian Navy corvette KRI Sultan Iskandar Muda and EU NAVFOR Somalia – Operation Atalanta frigate ITS Virginio Fasan. 

The exercise was based on the scenario of an anti-piracy operation. It included cross-deck helicopter landings, complex tactical evolutions at sea, boarding of suspicious vessels and fuel replenishment at sea.

The EU project on Critical Maritime Routes in the Indo-Pacific (CRIMARIO) provided its Indo-Pacific Regional Information Sharing (IORIS) platform for communication between participants in the exercise.

Indonesia’s KRI Sultan Iskandar Muda has just completed an assignment with the Maritime Task Force of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon.

Through its active contribution to peacekeeping missions, Indonesia makes a tangible contribution towards international peace and security in accordance with the United Nations Charter. Both Indonesia and the EU support a rules-based international order and effective multilateralism with the United Nations at its core. 

In November 2021, the sixth meeting of the dialogue discussed maritime security alongside the fight against terrorism and violent extremism, countering narcotics, peacekeeping and crisis management, cyber security, non-proliferation and disaster management. 

The EU sees Indonesia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as major partners for the implementation of the EU’s Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, in line with the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific.

The partners also pledged to strengthen their operational cooperation at sea, including joint naval exercises and port calls in the future.

Recently, the Indonesian Navy also conducted exercise Garuda Shield 2022 in the Natuna Sea with the US Navy and the Republic of Singapore Navy.

The Indonesian ships that participated in the sea phase included Bung Tomo-class corvettes KRI Bung Tomo (357) and KRI John Lie (358), Diponegoro-class corvette KRI Frans Kaisiepo (368), and Makassar-class landing platform dock KRI Makassar (590).