Indian Navy’s stealth Frigate, INS Talwar is deployed for Operation Sankalp commemorating the 3rd continuous year of Indian Navy’s presence in the Gulf for protection of India’s Maritime Interests.
Operation Sankalp
- Background
- After the attacks on two oil tanker ships in the Gulf of Oman in June 2019, Indian Navy had commenced Maritime Security Operations, code named Op SANKALP, in the Gulf Region to ensure safe passage of Indian Flag Vessels transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.
- As part of this, Indian Navy warships and aircraft deployed to establish presence, provide a sense of reassurance to the Indian merchantmen, monitor the ongoing situation and respond to any emergent crises.
- Stakeholders in the operation including the Ministry of Defence, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and DG, Shipping.
Strategic Importance of the region
- India is dependent for about 85 percent of its demand for oil on imports.
- The region has strategic importance since around 62 per cent of India’s oil imports, valued at approximately 66 Billion USD, come from this area in 2019-2020.
INS Talwar
- INS Talwar a guided-missile frigate.
- It is a modified version of Krivak III-class frigates
- INS Talwar built at the Baltiysky shipyard.
- 18 June 2003: It is formally accepted into the Indian Navy
- The equipment, most of them, are from Russia, but there are a significant number of equipment from India as well.
Strait of Hormuz
- The waterway separates Iran and Oman, linking the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.
- Most crude exported from Saudi Arabia, Iran, the UAE, Kuwait and Iraq – all members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) – is shipped through this waterway.
- It is also the route used for nearly all the liquefied natural gas (LNG) produced by the world’s biggest LNG exporter, Qatar.
- The UAE and Saudi Arabia have sought to find other routes to bypass the Strait, including building more oil pipelines.
Gulf of Oman
- Gulf of Oman or Sea of Oman is a gulf that connects the Arabian Sea with the Strait of Hormuz, which then connects to the Persian Gulf.
- It borders Iran and Pakistan on the north,Oman on the south and the United Arab Emirates on the west.
- It offers the only entrance from the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean into the Persian Gulf, thus the world’s major oil exporters and importers have a joint interest in its security.
Persian Gulf
- Persian Gulf, also called the Arabian Gulf, it is a shallow marginal sea of the Indian Ocean that lies between the Arabian Peninsula and the southwestern Iran.
- It is connected to the Gulf of Oman in the east by the Strait of Hormuz.
- Bordered by
- North, Northeast, and East: Iran
- Southeast and south: Part of Oman and United Arab Emirates
- Southwest and west : Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia
- Northwest : Kuwait and Iraq
- The area has approximately two-thirds of the world’s estimated proven oil reserves and one-third of the world’s estimated proven natural gas reserves.
- A considerable amount of sea trade passes through the gulf, leading to heavy traffic in the region.
Pic Courtesy: Indian Express
Content Source: PIB