An 11-member United States delegation led by Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, Commander United States Naval Forces Central Command, Commander Fifth Fleet and Commander Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) visited Mumbai from May 29-31, 2023 accompanied with his wife, Susan Cooper. The delegation was accompanied by Scott Ticknor, Acting Counsel General/ Dy Principal Officer, Consulate of the US at Mumbai and Capt David Wilcox, Resident Naval Attaché, US Embassy, New Delhi.

Vice Admiral Brad Cooper called on Vice Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command on May 30, 2023. The visiting delegation was given a presentation on roles, responsibilities and activities of Western Naval Command. Vice Admiral Brad Cooper addressed the Op Commanders and officers of WNC on the broad concept and role of CMF. Focussed discussions explored ways and means to strengthen cooperation between the two navies to enhance regional maritime security.

During the visit at Mumbai, the delegation was given a tour of the latest indigenous warship, INS Chennai and Heritage Museum, Naval Dockyard (Mumbai) wherein the maritime history of India was showcased to the visitors. The delegation also visited Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd., wherein they were apprised on the indigenous ship-building capability of MDL. In addition, the delegation also visited the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya.

India and US are party to Maritime Security Dialogue, which is conducted annually and India-US Naval cooperation has grown substantially over the last two decades. The relationship between the two Navies is spread over a wide canvas, which includes annual bilateral exercise ‘Malabar’, multilateral exercise ‘RIMPAC’, high level delegation visits, Subject Matter Expert Exchange, and goodwill visits by naval ships.

Both navies are committed towards ensuring maritime security in the Indo-Pacific Region wherein cooperation in the maritime domain is amongst the most enduring and key facets of engagement between the two countries. The current visit by US delegation further strengthens the relationship between the two great democracies.