26-11-2021 | 13:12 PM
Indian Ocean Naval Symposium
The 7th edition of the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) Conclave of Chiefs was hosted by the French Navy in Paris from 15 – 16 Nov 21.
About IONS
It is a forum to increase maritime cooperation among the littoral states of the Indian Ocean Region.
The inaugural edition of IONS was held in Feb 2008 at New Delhi, with Indian Navy as the Chair for two years
IONS includes 24 nations that permanently hold territory that abuts or lies within the Indian Ocean and 8 observer nations:
Other Important Groupings Associated with IOR
Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC)
Indian Ocean Commission (IOC)
Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR)
Information Fusion Centre for the Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR)
Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC)
Importance of Indian Oceanic Region
The Indian Ocean holds 16.8% of the world’s proven oil reserves and 27.9% of proven natural gas reserves.
Around 80 percent of the world’s seaborne oil trade passes through the choke points of this ocean
Region to counterbalance the increasing presence of China in the region.
