About Exercise MILAN:
- It is a biennial multilateral naval exercise which began in 1995.
- It has since significantly expanded in scope and scale to become the largest exercise held by India.
- It was started with the participation of only four countries, viz Indonesia, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand, in the 1995 edition, the exercise has since transitioned leaps and bounds in terms of number of participants and complexity of exercises.
- Originally conceived in consonance with India’s ‘Look East Policy and later expanded in ensuing years with the Government of India’s ‘Act East Policy’ and Security And Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR) initiative.
Key Features of MILAN 2026:
- Dual-Phase: Exercise MILAN’s Sea and Harbor Phases will focus on interoperability, maritime domain awareness, anti-submarine warfare, air defense, and search-and-rescue operations.
- International City Parade: It will feature contingents from participating navies, Indian Army, and Indian Air Force marching through Visakhapatnam’s iconic beachfront, the RK Beach, showcasing maritime diplomacy directly to citizens.
