New Delhi: INS Mysore has arrived at Lumut, Malaysia, for the fourth edition of exercise Samudra Laksamana, bringing the Indian and Royal Malaysian navies together for another round of professional and operational interaction. The warship reached Lumut on Wednesday as part of the Indian Navy’s operational deployment, with the exercise aimed at improving interoperability and sharing operational experience.
The Ministry of Defence said the programme includes engagements in harbour and at sea, including cross-deck visits, operational interactions and sporting activities. Personnel from the Malaysian navy and officials from the high commission of India received the ship and its crew on arrival.
The current edition follows the 12th India-Malaysia sub-committee meeting on military cooperation held in New Delhi on July 1, where the two sides reviewed military-to-military exchanges, bilateral exercises, training, staff talks, capacity building and maritime cooperation. They also discussed defence industry, technology, cybersecurity and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, while reaffirming support for peace, stability and freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific.
Naval ties see steady activity
India-Malaysia naval contact has remained active beyond formal exercises. RNA Media reported in May that INS Sagardhwani had arrived at Port Klang during its Southeast Asia deployment, where Indian and Malaysian naval personnel held professional interactions, training exchanges, cross-deck visits and specialist discussions.
That deployment also included exchanges on hydrography, marine environmental research and oceanographic technologies, adding a scientific and technical dimension to the wider maritime relationship.
Samudra Laksamana has developed into a regular bilateral platform. The third edition was held at and off Visakhapatnam from February 28 to March 2, 2024, with INS Kiltan and Malaysian navy ship KD Lekir participating. Harbour interactions were followed by an operational sea phase in which the two navies practised maritime operations together.
Broader defence engagement
The exercise forms part of a wider defence relationship that has expanded through regular visits, staff talks, training and multilateral interaction. At the February 2025 Malaysia-India defence cooperation committee meeting, the two countries identified maritime security, defence industry and emerging technologies as areas for greater cooperation and agreed to establish a joint focus group on non-traditional maritime security threats.
In February this year, the prime minister, Narendra Modi, and his Malaysian counterpart, Anwar Ibrahim, also welcomed regular navy-to-navy engagement through Samudra Laksamana, Milan and the Asean-India maritime exercise.
The defence ministry said the fourth Samudra Laksamana is aligned with India’s Mahasaghar vision and the Asean-India year of maritime cooperation 2026. For the two navies, the immediate focus at Lumut remains practical interaction, professional exchange and improving their ability to operate together at sea.