Over 25 nations to join Indian Navy-led maritime exercise in Kochi from July 20

📌 Summary:

• The Indian Navy will host ‘‘Operation Southern Readiness 26-2’’, a four-day multinational maritime security training engagement, at the Southern Naval Command, Kochi, from July 20-23, 2026
• Around 25 countries will participate, in partnership with the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF)
• The exercise is conducted under the Navy-led Combined Task Force 154 (CTF 154), the CMF’s dedicated Training Task Force
• Participating nations include Australia, Canada, Japan, Thailand, the UAE, Oman, Djibouti, Seychelles, the United States and the United Kingdom

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS3 Internal Security / GS2 IR — maritime security cooperation, India as a net security provider in the Indian Ocean Region (SAGAR).

📝 Prelims Facts:

• Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) is a multinational naval partnership headquartered in Bahrain
• CTF 154 is CMF’s training task force, led by India
• The exercise is hosted at the Southern Naval Command, Kochi

🔑 Key Term: Combined Task Force (CTF) — a mission-specific multinational naval grouping under the Combined Maritime Forces for maritime security tasks.