Russian Navy chief on visit to India

New Delhi: Admiral Vladimir Korolev, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, is visiting India heading a four-member delegation that ends on March 18.

The visit aims to consolidate bilateral naval relations between India and Russia and explore new avenues for naval cooperation, an official statement said.

On Wednesday, Admiral Korolev held discussions with Admiral Sunil Lanba, Chief of the Naval Staff and other officials of the Indian Navy.

The Admiral is scheduled to meet Defence Minister Arun Jaitley, Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa, Army chief General Bipin Rawat and the Defence Secretary.

India is the largest importer of defence equipment from Russia and a majority of the armament inventory in the Indian armed forces are of Russian origin.

The Indian and Russian navies cooperate "on many fronts, which include operational interactions, training, hydrographic cooperation, IT and exchange of subject matter experts in various fields," said an official statement.

In addition, they have been conducting bilateral Maritime Exercise `Indra Navy` since 2003. Eight editions have been held.

The Admiral will also visit Mumbai where he will meet the Commander-in-Chief, Western Naval Command, and visit an indigenously built destroyer INS Mysore.