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

The symposium was first held in 2008 with India as host.[5][6][7][8]

The chairmanship and location of the Symposium rotates between the various member states.

Role

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

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

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

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

List of symposiums

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]
2020 7th France Mayotte and Réunion April 2020 [15]

|8th |Thailand Bangkok |Dec 19-22 2023 |[15] |} 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

  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. Retrieved 2017-11-28.
  13. ^ "Indian Ocean Naval Symposium - 2014 | Indian Ocean Naval Symposium". ions.gov.in. 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".
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