About Exercise VARUNA
- Exercise VARUNA is the flagship bilateral naval exercise between the Indian Navy (IN) and the French Navy (FN).
- It began in 2001 and has evolved into a key platform for enhancing maritime cooperation and interoperability between the two navies.
- The 24th edition commenced with the arrival of the Indian Navy frigate INS Trishul (F43) at Toulon, France — a major French naval base and home port of the French Mediterranean fleet.
Objective
- Improve operational coordination between the two navies.
- Facilitate exchange of best practices in maritime operations.
- Enhance mutual understanding and interoperability between the two forces.
Key Activities (24th Edition)
- Cross-deck visits (personnel of one navy embarking on ships of the other)
- Operational interactions
- Exchange of best practices
- Joint training activities
- Sporting engagements
About INS Trishul
- Talwar-class guided missile frigate of the Indian Navy (design derived from the Russian Krivak-class, built in Russia under Project 1135.6).
- Commissioned in 2003; pennant number F43.
- Equipped with modernised systems, including BrahMos-capable launch systems, enhancing its precision strike capability.
- BrahMos is a supersonic cruise missile jointly developed by India and Russia.
Significance
- Highlights the Indian Navy's blue-water capabilities and its ability to undertake sustained deployments beyond the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
- Reflects the deepening India-France Strategic Partnership (established in 1998 — the first such partnership India forged with a Western country after Pokhran-II).
- France is a "resident power" of the Indo-Pacific, with territories such as Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean, making it a natural partner in India's Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative and vision of a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific.
- Strengthens defence-industrial and maritime cooperation, complementing major deals like Rafale fighter jets and Scorpene-class submarines (Project-75).
India-France Joint Exercises (Prelims Pointers)
| Exercise | Service | Partner |
|---|---|---|
| VARUNA | Navy | France |
| Garuda | Air Force | France |
| Shakti | Army | France |
Other Indian Naval Exercises (for comparison)
- Malabar – Multilateral (India, USA, Japan, Australia)
- SIMBEX – Singapore
- SLINEX – Sri Lanka
- JIMEX – Japan
- AUSINDEX – Australia
- Indra – Russia
- Konkan – United Kingdom
- Naseem-Al-Bahr – Oman
- MILAN – Multilateral naval exercise hosted by India