Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh Tripathi on Sunday said he still likes to call Bangladesh a friend and hopes that the situation in the neighboring country will improve. In August last year, the Sheikh Hasina government fell due to student-led protests in Bangladesh, after which a government was formed there which is not friendly towards India.
Sheikh Hasina, who has taken refuge in India, was sentenced to death by a special tribunal on November 17 in her absence after finding her guilty of crimes against humanity. Bangladesh has said that it expects the extradition of Sheikh Hasina from India as soon as possible.
In response to a question, the Navy Chief said that he would still refrain from calling Bangladesh anything other than a friend, because this could be a temporary and transitory phase. He said that we will have to wait. Elections are yet to be held in Bangladesh, so we should reserve our comments for now.
The Navy Chief said that we are training their personnel here. This morning itself I met a Bangladeshi officer cadet who passed out from NDA. After assuming the charge of Army Chief, my first visit was scheduled to Bangladesh. There was also a proposal to visit another capital, but I refused. I said I should go to Bangladesh, which is our first partner. There was a wonderful feeling of warmth, hospitality and what India has done.
He said that he will always remain optimistic and confident that things will change as far as Bangladesh is concerned. He participated in the question-answer session after delivering the Admiral JG Nadkarni Memorial Lecture on the topic Indian Navy: Navigation between Geopolitics, Technology and Strategy, organized by the Naval Foundation Pune Unit here.
On the question related to the successful test of indigenous hypersonic anti-ship ballistic missile SMASH by Pakistan Navy, Admiral Tripathi said that we are also preparing for it at the national level. Many of our scientists are working on this. This is one of the disruptive and niche technologies on which we are collaborating with DRDO and industry.
He said that we have put this challenge before all the talented people and we are waiting for your suggestions. I can assure you that the threat and the necessary responses have been fully acknowledged at the government level and many people are actively working on it.
Asked whether the Indian Navy has been integrated in the same way as the Indian Air Force and air defense of the armed forces were integrated during Operation Sindoor, Admiral Tripathi said that Operation Sindoor is still ongoing and discussion on anything related to it should be avoided.
He said that the air defense of the three armies is integrated. This was done during Operation Sindoor and the Navy is fully on this path. Asked whether the presence of Chinese spy ships in the South China Sea was causing delays in missile tests, the Navy chief replied in the negative.
He said that I have also read the news related to the presence of Chinese spy ships, but I have no information about any test being delayed due to this. This could be someone’s fabricated story, or it could also be a rumor being spread for some purpose.
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