Panaji, Feb 21 Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh Tripathi on Saturday called for greater unity among Indian Ocean Region (IOR) nations to address evolving maritime threats, including piracy, irregular migration, and drug trafficking.
He said criminal networks at sea have become “more organized, technologically aware, and interconnected,” stressing the need for collaborative operations to produce tangible outcomes.
Delivering his closing remarks at the fifth edition of the Goa Maritime Conclave (GMC) at the Naval War College in Goa, Tripathi said the forum has evolved from a dialogue-based platform into an action-oriented framework.
The biennial conclave was held under the theme “Common Maritime Security Challenges in the IOR - Progressing Lines of Efforts (LSOs) to Mitigate Dynamic Threats”.
It was attended by the heads of navies and maritime agencies from 14 participating countries, including Comoros, Kenya, Maldives, and Seychelles, as well as delegations from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Myanmar, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, and Thailand.
Highlighting key security concerns, the Navy chief pointed to Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing as one of the primary maritime threats.
A recent annual report from the International Fleet Review (IFR)-IOR reported a decline in IUU fishing incidents compared to the previous two years, reflecting the positive impact of enhanced patrols, improved surveillance, and more robust enforcement, he said.
“However, the sustained targeting of high-value species, and continued instances of poaching underscore the need for further strengthening of legal frameworks, regional cooperation mechanisms, advanced monitoring technologies, and community-based interventions,” said the naval chief.
He noted that the conclave followed closely on the heels of major maritime engagements in Visakhapatnam, including the International Fleet Review (IFR), Exercise MILAN, a biennial multilateral naval exercise, and the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) Conclave of Chiefs.
Tripathi flagged piracy, armed robbery, and trafficking as growing concerns.
“Piracy, after years of relative suppression, has shown renewed adaptability with pirate groups operating as far as 600 nautical miles offshore, while recent ReCAAP assessments indicate rising armed robbery incidents in Asian waters,” he said.
The trafficking of narcotics, arms, and other contraband has shown a consistent upward trend in both volume and sophistication, with routes from the Golden Crescent and the Golden Triangle increasingly converging at sea, he said.
Irregular human migration presents an even more troubling trend of increasing fatalities, as migrants are carried in unsafe vessels across longer distances, Tripathi added.
“Taken together, these activities reveal a common thread – maritime criminal networks are more organized, technologically aware, and interconnected – demanding a credible and coordinated regional response,” he said.
Regarding the future of the GMC, the Navy chief called for leveraging technology, undertaking joint operations, and institutionalizing cooperation.
“Firstly, in an era of artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, and rapidly adapting threats, we need to leverage technology to move from awareness to early warning and, from early warning to collective response,” he said.
There is a need to strengthen operational linkages and embed advanced analytic tools to translate shared information into timely action at sea, said the Navy chief.
While the Indian Navy’s NISHAR, or Network for Information Sharing, could be a tool for faster exchange of operational information, the Navy is willing to partner with GMC members to share expertise, support capacity building, and explore a common digital framework that enhances monitoring, intelligence exchange, and operational coordination, he said.
Underscoring the need for coordinated efforts, he said, “Across the world, we have seen how collaborative maritime operations produce tangible outcomes. When nations operate together with clearly defined objectives, they generate both deterrence and reassurance.” He cited the example of Operation Kurukuru against IUU fishing.
Referring to India’s initiatives, he said the month-long deployment of an Indian Naval Ship, SAGAR, to the South-West Indian Ocean, with a multinational crew of 44 personnel from partner nations, was “a modest beginning.”
“Building upon this experience and guided by our prime minister’s vision of MAHASAGAR or Mutual And Holistic Advancement for Security And Growth Across Regions, we will be deploying IOS SAGAR 2.0 later this year with enhanced scope and participation. I invite your suggestions so that this initiative reflects our collective priorities,” he said.
Quoting PM Narendra Modi, Tripathi said, “Trust has become India’s strongest currency.”
Pitching for cooperation beyond such biennial events, he said, “We have a duty to ensure regular interaction, structured follow-up, and work towards incremental outcomes. This will ensure that this forum remains relevant not only to our navies, but to the people whose livelihoods depend upon safe seas.”
Earlier, addressing a press conference, the Navy chief said any proposed joint maritime mechanism in the IOR would be based on consensus among participating nations, assuring India’s support for partner countries in capacity-building efforts. He said the first session of GMC involved discussions, including the possibility of a joint task force-type arrangement.