New Delhi, July 23 -- The success of the first Africa-India Key Maritime Engagement (AIKEYME 2025) off Dar-es-Salaam is a watershed moment in India's maritime diplomacy and South-South cooperation.
Gathering naval assets from ten Indian Ocean littoral countries-Kenya, Seychelles, and South Africa among them-the exercise highlights India's dedication to a rules-based maritime order, regional security, and common prosperity.
Conducted jointly with the Tanzania People's Defence Force, AIKEYME reflects India's MAHASAGAR vision and its extension of its IOS SAGAR initiative. The six-day event included harbour and sea phases with emphasis on principal regional threats-piracy, trafficking, and climate-induced disruptions. Activities such as Visit-Board-Search-and-Seizure (VBSS) and search-and-rescue simulations enhanced interoperability and collective readiness.
Strategically, AIKEYME is India's response to China's increasing presence in the western Indian Ocean. By emphasising capacity building, port connectivity, and blue economy partnership, India presents a cooperative and inclusive model. The deployment of INS Chennai, INS Kesari, and INS Sunayna demonstrated India's naval strength and its position as a reliable partner.
Of key importance, AIKEYME focused on economic integration, including sectors like fisheries management, maritime domain awareness, and coastal tourism. Indian private interest in Tanzanian ports and logistics marks a new level of Indo-African engagement.
Proposals to transform AIKEYME into a biennial forum and envisaged Indo-African Maritime Forum evince a forward-looking and strategic vision. With seas growing ever more contested, AIKEYME places India and Africa as co-operative forces of stability, fairness, and growth with a future.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.