Flags hoisted to kick off ‘AMAN-25’ multi-national maritime exercise

By Kamanthi Wickramasinghe reporting from Karachi, Pakistan

The opening ceremony of the ninth edition of 'AMAN', the multinational maritime exercise, kicked off at the Pakistan Navy Dockyard in Karachi on Thursday (February 7). 

The five-day event including the inaugural 'AMAN Dialogue' aims to bring maritime nations together to adopt safe and sustainable procedures, share experiences and collectively address maritime threats.

This year, navies from over 60 countries along with their ships, aircraft, special operation forces, EOD marine teams and observers will participate at the maritime exercise which will be held in the Arabian Sea. 

The opening ceremony witnessed the participation of senior naval officers from participating countries.

Speaking at the event as the Chief Guest, Commander Pakistan Fleet Rear Admiral Abdul Munib stressed on the importance of global maritime cooperation. He said that shared challenges such as maritime terrorism, piracy, human smuggling etc, require shared solutions. 

“The time has come for more participatory and partner-driven efforts in pursuit of maritime security rather than doing it alone. Expanse, quantum and diversity of maritime threats signify that one country, no matter how powerful it is, is incapable of dealing with these threats on its own. We believe that there exists a Cooperative Maritime Continuum which affords us to either operate independently or be a part of multilateral constructs such as combined maritime forces. The volume of trade and global energy dependence on the Indian Ocean and its littoral is a reminder that much of the progress of security of maritime nations is directly governed by what goes in our region.”

Speaking about the inaugural AMAN Dialogue, he further said that it is a forum for regional and extra-regional countries to develop interoperability and exchange views. 

“AMAN means Peace and this event is all about peace. One of the quotas of navies the world over is to ensure commercial activity at sea. AMAN is one step in that direction to ensure that the seas world over are safe and secure for commercial activities,” Rear Adm. Munib underscored.

A message from the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraff highlighted Pakistan’s commitment to establish regional peace and stability. 

“Closer cooperation among navies is vital in building resilience, reliable frameworks against evolving threats. Pakistan Navy has decided to execute AMAN Dialogue as an adjacent event to AMAN Exercise. This will enable teams of navies, coastguards, Defence forces and renowned academia to discuss threats and adopt innovative solutions to emerging maritime challenges,” the message read.

Sri Lanka Naval ship Wijayabahu will attend the AMAN exercise while senior officials from the Sri Lanka Navy will attend the AMAN Dialogue. The Sri Lanka Navy believes that the AMAN exercise would be an ideal platform for Sri Lanka Navy and other navies to work together in order to fight symmetric and asymmetric threats, especially in the maritime domain, with the view of achieving and manifesting the motto ‘Together for Peace’.