US envoy visits Western Naval Command HQ

US Ambassador to India Kenneth I. Juster, along with US Consul-General in Mumbai Edgard D. Kagan and other officials visited the Western Naval Command Headquarters, here on Saturday, an official spokesperson said.

They interacted with Vice-Admiral Girish Luthra, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, WNC, and visited a guided missile destroyer of the Western Fleet, INS Kochi.

Indo-US naval cooperation has grown substantially over the past couple of decades and both countries are part of the maritime security dialogue conducted every year, said a defence spokesperson.

Even as the relationship between the navies of the two countries has grown stronger, their cooperation is spread on a wide canvas including an annual bilateral naval exercise, Malabar, besides goodwill visits by ships and delegations from both sides.

With both navies committed towards ensuring maritime security in the Indian Ocean Region, the US and India have come a long way in institutionalizing their defence relationship.

The navies of the two countries share converging views on maritime areas of concern, anti-piracy, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

--IANS

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