New Delhi: Indian and American Special Forces carried out a joint military exercise at Bakloh in Himachal Pradesh in March to further enhance interoperability between the two sides, the defence ministry said.

It was the 11th edition of the exercise ‘Vajra Prahar’ that is aimed at sharing best practices and experiences in areas such as joint mission planning and operational tactics.

“The 11th edition of Indo-US joint special forces exercise Vajra Prahar 2021 was conducted at Special Forces training school located at Bakloh, in Himachal Pradesh in March,” the defence ministry said.

It said the exercise was aimed at improving interoperability between the special forces of the two countries.

The ministry, in a statement, said bilateral military exercises and defence exchanges are an important facet of deepening bilateral defence cooperation between friendly countries.

“During such events, the armies of participating nations jointly train, plan and execute a series of operations for neutralisation of threats of varied nature with a common aim of countering threats of international terrorism through mutual training and jointness,” it said.

India and the US carried out a two-day naval exercise in the eastern Indian Ocean Region on March 28 and 29.

The Indian Navy deployed its warship Shivalik and long-range maritime patrol aircraft P8I in the ‘PASSEX’ exercise while the US Navy was represented by USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group.