The India-Russia bilateral naval exercise INDRA 2026 begins today at Vladivostok, with INS Sahyadri representing the Indian Navy in a drill running until October 18.

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• INDRA 2026 is a bilateral exercise between the Indian Navy and the Russian Federation Navy, scheduled from October 13 to 18.
• INS Sahyadri arrived at Vladivostok, Russia, on October 10 to take part in the exercise.
• The Ministry of Defence says the participation is in line with India's MAHASAGAR vision.
• MAHASAGAR stands for Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions.
• The exercise has two parts, a harbour phase followed by coordinated operational activities at sea.
• Its stated aims are better mutual understanding, operational coordination and interoperability between the two navies.
• The deployment is meant to carry forward the momentum from the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit held last December.
• The INDRA series began in 2003 and is regarded as a cornerstone of India-Russia defence relations.
• The previous edition, INDRA 2025, was held off Chennai from March 28 to April 2 with a harbour phase and a sea phase in the Bay of Bengal.
• India-Russia military technical cooperation has shifted from a buyer-seller model to joint research, co-development and joint production of defence systems.