VISAKHAPATNAM, October 17 — The Indian Navy and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) inaugurated the 8th edition of the bilateral maritime exercise 'JIMEX 2026' off the coast of Visakhapatnam in the Bay of Bengal on Saturday.
The operational deployment features frontline indigenous naval assets, including a guided-missile stealth destroyer, an anti-submarine warfare corvette, a fleet replenishment tanker, and P-8I long-range maritime patrol aircraft operating alongside JMSDF guided-missile destroyers and integral helicopters. The exercise incorporates complex harbour professional interactions followed by rigorous sea-phase tactical evolutions.
Commanding officers underscored that the drills encompass advanced anti-submarine warfare (ASW) tracking, surface live-firing drills, coordinated tactical maneuvers, and cross-deck flight operations, enhancing high-end interoperability in support of a rules-based, free, and open Indo-Pacific maritime architecture.
The strategic trajectory of JIMEX (instituted in 2012), complementary India-Japan exercises (Dharma Guardian for Army, Veer Guardian for Air Force), the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD), and the multilateral Malabar Naval Exercises are primary study themes across UPSC International Relations (GS Paper II) and defence recruitment exams.