Indian Navy chief Admiral Dinesh Kumar Tripathi, who is on an official visit to Greece, met Vice Admiral Dimitrios E Kataras, Chief of the Hellenic Navy General Staff on Friday and discussed ways to strengthen the navy-to-navy partnership.

According to a statement by the Indian Navy, this was the first visit by an Indian Navy chief to Greece.

“Both the chiefs held discussions on strengthening the navy-to-navy partnership by augmenting operational interactions, maritime security cooperation and streamlining shared goals for a stable and secure maritime environment,” the statement said.

The discussions were focussed on the criticality of open sea trade routes, laying the groundwork for advancing Indo-Greek defence collaboration with a focus on strategic naval opportunities, capacity building, shared training initiatives, and enhancing interoperability, the statement added.

Collaboration in niche technologies and defence industry opportunities were also deliberated, it said.

During his visit, Admiral Tripathi also met Ioannis Kefalogiannis, Deputy Minister of Defence, Greece and Vice Admiral Christos Sasiakos, Deputy Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff, marking a significant step in deepening defence ties and fostering a robust strategic partnership towards enhancing maritime security in the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).