Fahad Abdullah, Chief of Staff, Saudi Naval Forces, visits India

Admiral Fahad Abdullah S Al-Ghofaily, Chief of Staff of the Royal Saudi Naval Forces, is in India on a four-day official visit from 10 to 13 January 2024. This visit of Fahad Abdullah is a testament to the long-standing relationship between the Saudi Arabian and Indian Navies.

Purpose of visit:

• The main objectives of this visit of the Chief of Staff of the Royal Saudi Naval Forces are:
  • To increase naval cooperation between the navies of the two countries
  • To address shared maritime challenges in the Indian Pacific region.

Conversation with Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar:

• Admiral Fahad Abdullah met Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar in New Delhi on January 11.
• During this, both the Navy Chiefs discussed many issues, mainly
• To strengthen naval cooperation between the navies of both countries.
• Expanding collaborative mechanisms to strengthen naval cooperation
• Along with this, many other measures were discussed.

Welcome from the Guard of Honour:

• He was welcomed with a formal guard of honour at the lawns of South Block.

Points of cooperation between the two navies:

• The Indian Navy cooperates with the Royal Saudi Naval Force through various activities, which mainly :
• Bilateral Naval Exercise Al Mohed Al Hindi
• Training work
• Operational initiatives include other maritime activities.
• Indian Naval warships regularly make port calls at various ports in Saudi Arabia. Apart from this, the Indian Navy participates in various multilateral fora such as IONS (Indian Ocean Naval Symposium),
• MILAN
• CMF (Combined Maritime Force)
• The Royal Saudi Navy is also cooperating with the force in DCOC-JA (Djibouti Code of Conduct – Jeddah Amendment).
• Where the navies of both countries are helping each other to supplement maritime security in the maritime area.

Admiral Fahad Abdullah's programme:

• Admiral Fahad Abdullah S Al-Ghofaily had several meetings during his visit to India. Apart from this, they also have many other programs, which mainly include: 
  • Chief of Defence Staff
  • Secretary of Defence
  • Chief of Air Staff
  • There is a program to interact with the Vice Chief of Army Staff.

Fahadh Abdullah will also visit Gurugram and Kochi:

• Admiral Fahad Abdullah will also visit IFC-IOR in Gurugram and Southern Naval Command in Kochi during the visit.