Indian Navy Hosts Multinational Maritime Exercise 'Operation Southern Readiness 26-2' at Kochi
The Indian Navy is hosting Operation Southern Readiness 26-2, a multinational maritime training engagement, at the Southern Naval Command, Kochi (Kerala), from 20 to 23 July 2026. Conducted with: The four-day engagement is conducted in partnership with the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) under the India-led Combined Task Force (CTF) 154, which is the CMF's dedicated training task force. Objective: To enhance maritime security cooperation, improve interoperability among partner navies and strengthen professional capabilities in tackling emerging maritime challenges. Training content: A blend of classroom sessions, simulator-based instruction and practical training covering maritime law, maritime domain awareness, information sharing, counter-narcotics operations, force protection, asymmetric threats and the employment of maritime uncrewed systems. Participants: Personnel from over 40 nations are associated with the engagement, with participating countries including Australia, Canada, Japan, Thailand, the UAE, Oman, Djibouti, Seychelles, the USA and the UK.
Southern Naval Command HQ: Kochi, Kerala (the Indian Navy's training command) | Western Naval Command: Mumbai | Eastern Naval Command: Visakhapatnam | Combined Maritime Forces HQ: Manama, Bahrain | CTF 154 is the CMF's training task force, led by India | Chief of the Naval Staff: Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi
The Indian Navy hosted the multinational maritime training exercise Operation Southern Readiness 26-2 at Southern Naval Command, Kochi from 20-23 July 2026. • The exercise was conducted with the Combined Maritime Forces under the India-led Combined Task Force (CTF) 154, the CMF's dedicated training task force.