Indian Ocean Naval Symposium

The Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) is a series of biennial meetings between the littoral states of the Indian Ocean region. It provides a forum to increase maritime security cooperation, discuss regional maritime issues, and promote friendly relationships among the member states.[1][2][3][4]

## History

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The symposium was first held in 2008 with India as host. The chairmanship and location of the Symposium rotates between the various member states.[5][6][7][8]

## Role

[edit]

IONS is a security construct for the Indian Ocean region which is similar to the Western Pacific Naval Symposium. It is a voluntary initiative among the navies and maritime security agencies of the member nations. In addition to the symposiums, numerous other activities like workshops, essay competitions and lectures are also held under the umbrella of the organization.[1]

## Members and observers

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Indian Ocean Naval Symposium
Dark blue = member States
Light blue = observers

The 25 member nations of the IONS are grouped into four sub-regions.[1][9][10]

### Members

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Sub region  | Member  | Accession

|
|

South Asian  |  Bangladesh |
India | February 2008
Maldives |
Pakistan | March 2014[11]
Seychelles |
Sri Lanka |
West Asian  |  Iran |
Oman |
Saudi Arabia |
Qatar |
UAE |
East African  |  France[A] |
Kenya |
Mauritius |
Mozambique |
South Africa |
Tanzania |
Eritrea |
South East Asian and Australian  |  Australia |
Indonesia |
Malaysia |
Myanmar |
Singapore |
Thailand |
Timor Leste |

1. ^ Because of Mayotte and Réunion.

### Observers

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There are eight states with observer status:[citation needed]

* China
* Germany
* Italy
* Japan
* Madagascar
* Netherlands
* Russia
* Spain

## List of symposiums

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Year  | Edition  | Host  | Dates  | Notes

|
|
|
|

2008  | 1st  |  India | 14–16 February 2008  |
2010  | 2nd  |  United Arab Emirates | 10–12 May 2010  |
2012  | 3rd  |  South Africa | 10–14 April 2012  | [12]
2014  | 4th  |  Australia | 26 March 2014  | [13]
2016  | 5th  |  Bangladesh | 11–13 January 2016  | [14]
2018  | 6th  |  Iran | 22–25 April 2018  | [15]
2021  | 7th  |  Réunion and Paris | June 2021  | [15]
2023  | 8th  |  Thailand | Dec 19-22 2023  | [15]
2025  | 9th  |  India | End of 2025  | [16]

The 7th edition of Indian Ocean Naval Symposium was held at Réunion, France. But during that, it was agreed upon to conduct the extant conclave of Chiefs in Paris. Eventually in November 2021 the conclave was concluded in Paris, France.

## References

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1. ^ a b c "About IONS". Indian Ocean Naval Symposium. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
2. ^ "Indian Ocean Naval Symposium". Royal Australian Navy. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
3. ^ Tewari, Sharad; Khanijo, Dr Roshan (2016-10-10). The Indo Pacific Region: Security Dynamics and Challenges. Vij Books India Pvt Ltd. ISBN 9789385563300.
4. ^ Rumley, Dennis; Doyle, Timothy (2016-04-14). Indian Ocean Regionalism. Routledge. ISBN 9781317585978.
5. ^ "India, China to join Indian Ocean exercise". Defence Reporter. The Hindu. 13 August 2017. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019.
6. ^ Limaye, Satu (April 2017). "Weighted West, Focused on the Indian Ocean and Cooperating across the Indo-Pacific: The Indian Navy's New Maritime Strategy, Capabilities, and Diplomacy" (PDF). CNA.
7. ^ "China-India Brief #99 | Centre on Asia and Globalization". Archived from the original on 2018-01-21. Retrieved 2018-04-23.
8. ^ journals.christuniversity.in/index.php/artha/article/download/1569/1314
9. ^ "IONS Working Groups | Indian Ocean Naval Symposium". www.ions.global. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
10. ^ Mahmud, Tarek (27 November 2017). "President inaugurates 32-nation naval exercise". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
11. ^ IANS (2017-07-26). "10-nation Indian Ocean Naval Symposium ends in Pakistan". Business Standard India. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
12. ^ "Indian Ocean Naval Symposium - 2012 | Indian Ocean Naval Symposium". ions.gov.in. Archived from the original on 2017-12-01. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
13. ^ "Indian Ocean Naval Symposium - 2014 | Indian Ocean Naval Symposium". ions.gov.in. Archived from the original on 2017-12-01. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
14. ^ "5th biennial assembly of Indian Ocean Naval Symposium kicks off in Bangladeshi capital - Xinhua | English.news.cn". news.xinhuanet.com. Archived from the original on January 26, 2016. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
15. ^ a b c "Indian Ocean Naval Symposium".
16. ^ https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1989652