CNN
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The Indian Navy’s rescue of a industrial ship from pirates off Somalia’s coast final weekend reveals how Delhi’s army has developed particular forces capabilities on par with a few of the world’s finest, analysts say.

The navy rescued 17 crew members of the vessel MV Ruen throughout an anti-piracy operation lasting practically two days, in keeping with an Indian Navy information launch, with no casualties reported. Dozens of pirates have been taken into custody, it stated.

The operation concerned a navy destroyer, a patrol ship, an Indian Air Force C-17 transporter flying greater than 1,500 miles to airdrop marine commandos, a naval drone, a reconnaissance drone and a P-8 surveillance jet, the discharge stated.

“The success of the operation marks the Indian Navy as a top-class force in terms of training, command and control and other capabilities,” stated John Bradford, Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs fellow.

“What marks this operation as impressive is how risk was minimized by using a coordinated force that includes use of a warship, drones, fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft, and marine commandos.”

Experts concern the unstable security situation in the Red Sea as a result of assaults by Yemen-based Houthi rebels on industrial transport could tie up worldwide forces and supply a window for Somali pirates within the close by Horn of Africa – presenting a multi-billion-dollar risk to the worldwide economic system.

Yemen and Somalia are among the many area’s poorest nations, each ravaged by years of civil battle.

Somali pirates’ seize of the MV Ruen in December final 12 months marked the primary profitable hijacking of a vessel off the nation’s coast since 2017.

Spanish, Japanese and Indian warships tracked the Malta-flagged, Bulgarian-managed bulk service because it was taken into Somali territorial waters, in keeping with a December report from the European Union Naval Force.

But when the Ruen, now operated by a pirate crew, final week left Somali waters with the intent of committing acts of piracy on the excessive seas, the Indian Navy made strikes to intercept it, in keeping with a navy assertion posted on social platform X.

The destroyer INS Kolkata, working within the space to assist guarantee worldwide maritime safety, used a ship-launched drone to substantiate the Ruen was being operated by armed pirates, the Indian assertion stated.

After the pirates fired on the drone, destroying it, after which on the Indian warship itself, the Kolkata responded by firing on the Ruen, disabling its steering and navigation, the assertion stated.

As the Kolkata sought the give up of the pirates, the commandos parachuted in after a 10-hour flight from India, the air power stated on X. Rafts have been additionally dropped into the ocean from the massive transport for marines to succeed in the Ruen.

The Indian present of power proved an excessive amount of for the pirates.

“Due to sustained pressure and calibrated actions by the Indian Navy over the last 40 hours, all 35 Somali pirates surrendered,” the navy assertion stated.

Bulgarian leaders, together with President Rumen Radev, thanked India and its Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the operation.

“My sincere gratitude to (Modi) for the brave action of (the) Navy rescuing the hijacked Bulgarian ship ‘Ruen’ and its crew, including 7 Bulgarian citizens,” Radev posted on X.

Analyst Carl Schuster, a former US Navy captain, stated the incident highlighted the professionalism of the Indian Navy and stated Delhi’s marine commando power, often known as MARCOS, had discovered from its US and British counterparts.

“The Indian Navy itself is a highly trained and disciplined professional force,” Schuster stated.

“MARCOS’ nearly eight months of training is modeled after Britain’s SAS. Despite a very intense selection process, only about 10% to 15% of those who enter the training graduate,” he stated.

The analysts famous that the Indian Navy is skilled in anti-piracy operations, going again greater than 20 years – and the restive safety scenario in one of many world’s main transport lanes meant they have been prone to be referred to as on once more.

In a January media briefing, an Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson stated maritime safety in area is a precedence for India.

“The ongoing activities there are indeed a matter of concern, and it affects our economic interests,” official spokesperson Shri Randhir Jaiswal stated.

“We are consistently monitoring the situation. Our naval forces, naval vessels are engaged in ensuring the safety of our commercial vessels,” Jaiswal stated.