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Milan (naval exercise)
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Milan (Hindi: Milan, lit. "Meeting")[1] is a multilateral naval exercise hosted by the Indian Navy. The biennial event features professional exercises and seminars, social events and sporting fixtures between participating nations.[2]
Milan was first held in 1995. Apart from the Indian Navy, the navies of Indonesia, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand participated in the inaugural edition.[3] All editions of Milan had been hosted under the aegis of the Andaman and Nicobar Command and were held in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. In 2020, the Navy decided to hold the next edition of Milan in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh under the Eastern Naval Command.[4]
Seventeen nations, including India, participated in Milan 2014 making it the biggest edition of the event ever.[5] The most recent edition of Milan was held at Port Blair from 6-13 March 2018.[6] Sixteen foreign nations participated in the event.[7] The 2020 edition of Milan would have been the largest edition of the exercise with 30 foreign navies confirming their participation. However, the Indian Navy postponed the exercise in early March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.[8]
The next edition of Milan is scheduled to be held in February 2022 in Visakhapatnam, and is expected to be the largest edition of the event with 46 nations having been invited to participate. All Quad nations were invited to participate which would mark the first time that Japan and the United States participate in Milan.[9] The 2022 edition will include a harbour phase followed by a sea phase. According to the Indian Navy, the exercise will involve the "simulation of complex operational scenarios, tactical maneuvers and multi-national groupings with seamanship drills".[4]
Editions
Milan was first held in 1995. Since then, the event has been held biennially except for 2001, 2005, and 2016. The 2001 and 2016 editions were not held because of the International Fleet Review, while the 2005 event was postponed to 2006 due to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami.[3] The following lists every edition of Milan and the countries that participated in the edition. Indonesia, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand have participated in every edition of the exercise.
Countries participating for the first time are in italics.
| S. No. | Date | Participants |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1995 | Indonesia, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand |
| 2 | 1997 | Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand |
| 3 | 1999 | Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand |
| - | 2001 | Not held due to the International Fleet Review 2001 |
| 4 | 2003 | Australia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand |
| - | 2005 | Postponed to 2006 due to the December 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. |
| 5 | 2006 | Australia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand |
| 6 | 2008 | Australia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand |
| 7 | 2010 | Australia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand |
| 8 | 2012 | Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Myanmar, New Zealand, Philippines, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam |
| 9 | 4-9 February 2014 | Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Kenya, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Myanmar, New Zealand, Philippines, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, Vietnam |
| - | 2016 | Not held due to the International Fleet Review 2016. |
| 10 | 6-13 March 2018[10] | Australia, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Indonesia, Kenya, Malaysia, Mauritius, Myanmar, New Zealand, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, Vietnam |
| - | 18-28 March 2020 | Postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| 11 | February 2022 | 46 countries invited |
References
- ↑ Gill, Don McLain (21 October 2021). "Why the Milan 2022 naval exercise matters". Asia Times. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
- ↑ "Navy to host MILAN from March 6 to 13". The Hindu. 25 February 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "History". milan18.org. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Ex-Milan scheduled for February 2022; QUAD countries will participate". The Financial Express. 2021-10-13. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
- ↑ "17 Nations 15 Ships Demonstrate a Momentous 'Milap': Milan 2014 an Unequivocal Success". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
- ↑ "India to host mega naval exercise amid China's manoeuvring in high seas". The Economic Times. 25 February 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
- ↑ "Multilateral naval exercise begins in Andamans - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
- ↑ Gurung, Shaurya Karanbir (3 March 2020). "Indian Navy postpones multilateral exercise Milan 2020 due to coronavirus". The Economic Times. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
- ↑ Service, Tribune News. "India plans jumbo 46-nation naval exercise". Tribuneindia News Service. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
- ↑ Mar 6, PTI / Updated. "milan 2018: Multilateral naval exercise begins in Andamans | India News - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 4 November 2021.