Indian warship to dock in Da Nang for friendly visit

The ship will dock at Tien Sa, a deep-water port considered the biggest and most important port in terms of economics in central Vietnam.

The visit, part of the Indian Navy's deployment to the Southeast Asia, will comprise professional exchanges between the two navies, friendly games, meetings between the top Indian and Vietnamese naval officers, a tour of the city for the Indian crew, and a visit to the destroyer by Vietnamese Navy and students.

The two navies will also join a training course in waters off Da Nang’s coast.

Launched in 2005, INS Sahyadri is a Shivalik-class stealth multi-role frigate built for the Indian Navy. This class features improved stealth and land attack capabilities over the preceding Talwar-class frigates.

Vietnamese and Indian navies have cooperated in many different fields including crew training, ship fixing and maintenance and logistics.

On April 2, Indian Coast Guard ship ICGS Vijit docked in Da Nang for four days as part of ongoing moves to strengthen naval ties and enhance regional security.

It was followed by a four-day visit by Indian stealth guided-missile destroyer INS Kolkata and fuel and logistics tanker INS Shakti to Vietnam's military port of Cam Ranh in the central province of Khanh Hoa on April 13.

Vietnam and India established diplomatic relations in 1972 and their relationship has developed strongly over the past years in both economy and trade as well as national defense.

In 2016, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Vietnam, bilateral relations were upgraded into a "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership," a status that Vietnam has with only two other countries, Russia and China, with defense cooperation considered a priority.

India, a staunch ally in Vietnam's fight for independence and reunification, is also one of Vietnam's top trading partners. Two-way trade turnover reaching $10.69 billion last year, double that of 2016, according to the Vietnam Trade Affairs Office in India.