News Excerpt:

The U.K. is leveraging a logistics support agreement signed with India to expand military to military engagements, especially in the maritime domain, as it also looks to augment its capability and deployments in the Indo-Pacific.

More about News: 

• The United Kingdom's Littoral Response Group (LRG) arrived in Chennai on Tuesday as the first engagement of its deployment to the Indian Ocean region, 

• The U.K. and India signed a logistics-sharing agreement in 2022 allowing the provision of logistic support, supplies, and services between their armed forces for joint training, exercises, authorized port visits, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations.
• This agreement has led to increased engagements between the U.K. and Indian armed forces and has supported longer deployments of U.K. capabilities in the region, aligning with the U.K.'s Indo-Pacific tilt.
• This is the first time a Royal Navy vessel will undergo maintenance at an Indian shipyard - 
• The agreement has enabled the Royal Navy to receive spare parts manufactured by Indian shipyards within a short notice period, showcasing growing interoperability between the two navies.
• The Royal Air Force flights traveling in the region have also benefited from taking logistics halts in India twice so far, allowing opportunities for the two air forces to share best practices and experiences.
• The U.S. warships were the first to arrive in India for repairs. 
• L&T’s shipyard was the first to enter into a Master Shipyard Repair Agreement (MRSA) with the U.S. and has so far repaired three U.S. Navy fleet support ships. 
• After L&T, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited and Cochin Shipyard Limited also entered into MRSAs, enabling them to repair U.S. Navy ships.
• Prior to entering Kattupalli, the U.K. task group had conducted maritime exercises with INS Trishul in the Arabian Sea. 
• Following the completion of the maintenance, RFA Argus and RFA Lyme Bay conducted a maritime exercise in the Bay of Bengal. 
• INS Sahyadri joined the U.K. Task Group, conducting maritime manoeuvres, aviation, and replenishment serials, 
• These activities strengthen the foundation laid for future maritime engagements as part of the 2030 UK-India Roadmap, expanding the U.K.'s maritime domain in the region through the logistics-sharing agreement with India.