Muscat

In a boost to the maritime partnership between the Indian Navy and the Royal Oman Navy, the indigenously built destroyer INS Visakhapatnam entered Oman on Sunday, Indian Navy officials said. Officials said the Indian Navy and the Royal Oman Navy are working closely to deal with security challenges in the region and the warship is part of the Western Naval Command fleet.

The Sultanate of Oman is a strategic partner of India and an important interlocutor in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Arab League and Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) forums. India and Oman are bound by geography, history and culture and enjoy warm relations. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, while people-to-people contacts between India and Oman date back 5000 years, diplomatic relations were established in 1955 and the relationship was upgraded to a strategic partnership in 2008.

INS Visakhapatnam is the lead ship of the P15B class guided missile stealth destroyer and was commissioned on November 21, 2021. The ship is a symbol of India’s mature shipbuilding capability and pursuit of the ‘Make-in-India’ initiative towards achieving ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’. The ship’s crew follow his motto ‘Yasho Labhasva’, a Sanskrit phrase which translates to ‘get glory’. It symbolizes the indomitable spirit and capability of this mighty ship to achieve success and glory in every endeavour. The Navy said the motto inspires its crew to conquer all odds and always uphold the glory of the ship, service and nation.