Washington: India's Charge d'Affaires in Washington, DC, Sripriya Ranganathan interacted with the visiting Indian Air Force (IAF) contingent at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska. The Base Commander and CO Combat Training Squadron briefed Ranganathan on Exercise Red Flag Alaska.

In a post on X, the Indian Air Force - Media Co-ordination Centre (IAF-MCC) stated, "Charge d'Affaires of India in Washington DC Ambassador Sripriya Ranganathan @ranganathan_sr visited the IAF contingent at @EielsonAirForce Alaska on Monday, and received a briefing on Ex Red Flag Alaska by Base Commander and CO Combat Training Squadron, followed by interaction with the visiting IAF contingent."

On May 30, the IAF contingent arrived at the Eielson Air Force of the US Air Force to participate in the multi-national exercise Red Flag 24, IAF-MCC had stated on X. According to IAF, Exercise Red Flag is an advanced aerial combat training exercise.

In a post on X, IAF MCC on May 30 stated, "Onwards and Upwards. An #IAF contingent arrived today at the Eielson AF Base of @usairforce, at Alaska, USA, to participate in the upcoming edition of the multi-national exercise Red Flag 24. Ably supported by its IL-78 air to air refuellers and the C-17 transport ac, the IAF Rafale fighters took a transatlantic flight with staging halts at Greece and Portugal. Aimed to integrate aircrew in a multinational environment, Ex Red Flag is a two-week advanced aerial combat training exercise."

Notably, India and the US enjoy a comprehensive global strategic partnership covering almost all areas of human endeavour, driven by shared democratic values, convergence of interests on a range of issues, and vibrant people-to-people contacts, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

India has the largest number of military exercises with the US, which are growing in scale and complexity, according to MEA. Important bilateral exercises include Yudh Abhyas (Army), Vajra Prahar (Special Forces), Malabar (Navy), Cope India (Air Force), and Tiger Triumph (tri-services). Red Flag, RIMPAC, CUTLASS Express, Sea Dragon, and Milan are some multilateral exercises in which the two countries participate.

(With Agency Inputs)