Indian battleships take part in Chinese navy's biggest fleet review, Pakistan gives it a miss

Two of the Indian Navy’s latest vessels — a destroyer, INS Kolkata, and a fleet tanker, INS Shakti — were part of a multi-national naval fleet that Chinese President Xi Jinping reviewed on Tuesday on the 70th anniversary of the raising of the People’s Liberation Army (Navy), or PLA(N).

INS Kolkata and INS Shakti have sailed to the port city of Qingdao, which hosted warships from 60 countries for the maritime spectacle.

The Indian Navy participated for the third consecutive time in the PLA(N)’s five-yearly international fleet review (IFR). “The Navy has deployed its finest assets for the IFR with an aim to strengthen existing cooperation, enhance mutual trust, extend interoperability and build greater synergy to address common maritime concerns among participating navies,” the Navy stated on Tuesday.