Exercise VAJRA PRAHAR

Why in News

Recently, Special Forces of India and the USA conducted the joint military exercise ‘VAJRA PRAHAR 2021’ in Himachal Pradesh.

• Earlier, India and the USA navy had carried out a two-day Passage Exercise (PASSEX) in the eastern Indian Ocean Region.

Key Points

• About the Exercise:
  
  • The joint exercise by the Special Forces of both the countries is conducted alternatively between India and the United States.
    
    • Special Forces are the units of a country's armed forces that undertake covert, counterterrorist, and other specialized operations.
  • This is the 11^th edition of the exercise conducted at Special Forces Training School located at Bakloh, Himachal Pradesh.
    
    • The 10^th edition of VAJRA PRAHAR was held in 2019 at Seattle, USA.
• Aim:
  
  • To share the best practices and experiences in areas such as joint mission planning and operational tactics as also to improve interoperability between the Special Forces of both nations.
• Other Exercises of India with the USA:
  
  • Exercise Yudh Abhyas (Army).
  • Cope India (Air Force).
  • Red Flag (USA’s multilateral air exercise).
  • Malabar Exercise (trilateral naval exercise of India, USA and Japan).

Source: PIB