India and the United Kingdom’s joint military exercise ‘Ajeya Warrior’ is being conducted at Salisbury Plains.
The bilateral exercise is being held at Salisbury Plains, United Kingdom till May 11, according to the statement released by Defence Ministry. Ajeya Warrior is a biennial training event with the United Kingdom conducted alternatively in the United Kingdom and India, the last edition was held at Chaubatia, Uttarakhand in October 2021.
Soldiers of the 2 Royal Gorkha Rifles from the United Kingdom and Indian Army soldiers from the Bihar Regiment are participating in the exercise. The Indian Army contingent arrived at Brize Norton on April 26 in an Indian Air Force C-17 aircraft with indigenous weapons and equipment.
According to the Ministry of Defence, the aim of the exercise is to build positive military relations, imbibe each other’s best practices and promote the ability to operate together while undertaking company-level sub-conventional operations in urban and semi-urban environments under UN mandate, in addition to developing inter-operability, bonhomie, camaraderie and friendship between the two armies, the statement read.
The scope of this exercise involves a Command Post Exercise (CPX) at the Battalion level and Company level Field Training Exercise (FTX). During the exercise, participants will engage in various missions testing their operational acumen in various simulated situations; showcasing and refining their tactical drills, and learning from each other’s operational experience.
“Ajeya Warrior” is yet another significant milestone in defence cooperation between the Indian Army and British Army which will further foster the bilateral relations between the two countries, said the Defence Ministry statement.
The exercise is part of an initiative to develop interoperability and share expertise with friendly foreign nations.
Both nations’ military forces take part in this combined military drill. It aims to provide pieces of training to the soldiers of both nations in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations. It has proved to be an excellent strategy for strengthening the ties between them.