Indian armed forces contingent leaves for Uzbekistan for joint exercise ‘Dustlik’

An Indian armed forces contingent, comprising army and air force personnel, left for Uzbekistan on Monday to participate in the joint military exercise ‘Dustlik’, scheduled from April 15 to 28, a Defence Ministry statement said.

The exercise, to be held in Termez in the Central Asian nation, is being organised to foster military cooperation and enhance combined capabilities to execute joint operations in mountainous as well as semi-urban terrain, it said.

It would focus on a high degree of physical fitness, joint planning, joint tactical drills and basics of special arms skills.

The Defence Ministry said the complexity of this edition of the exercise has been enhanced with the conduct of multi-domain operations as the 60-member Indian contingent comprises 45 army personnel, majorly from a Jat Regiment battalion, as well as combat support arms and services, and 15 personnel from the Indian Air Force. The army component also comprises two women – one from the Artillery and the other from the Army Medical Corps.

The Uzbek contingent, comprising approximately 100 personnel from the army and air force, will be represented by personnel from its Southern Operational Command, part of the South-West Military District.

Tactical drills to be practised during the exercise will include the creation of a joint command post, establishing an intelligence and surveillance centre, securing of a landing site, small team insertion and extraction, special heliborne operations, cordon and search operations, room intervention drills, and demolition of illegal structures.

As per the ministry, Exercise ‘Dustlik’ will enable the two sides to share their best practices in tactics, techniques, and procedures for conducting joint operations, and facilitate developing inter-operability, bonhomie and camaraderie between soldiers of both countries. This will also enhance the level of defence cooperation, further fostering bilateral relations between the two friendly nations, it said.

The exercise is a yearly event conducted alternatively in India and Uzbekistan, with the previous edition conducted at India’s Pithoragarh in February 2023.