In latest move towards growing ties, India hands over missile corvette INS Kirpan to Vietnam

INS Kirpan—which is an indigenously-built missile corvette—was decommissioned after completing 32 years of service to be gifted to Vietnam. It was handed over to VPN with a complete weapon complement. Since its commissioning in 1991, the ship has been an integral part of the Navy’s Eastern Fleet and has participated in several operations.

It is manned by about 12 officers and 100 sailors and is 90 meters long and 10.45 meters in width with a maximum displacement of 1,450 tons.

Underlining the deep-rooted friendship and strategic partnership between India and Vietnam, Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar said what made the occasion even more significant is the fact that this is the first-ever occasion that India is offering a fully-operational corvette to any Friendly Foreign Country.

“It is a matter of great honour for me to be a part of the handing over ceremony of one of the finest and longest-serving warships of the Indian Navy – Kirpan, to the esteemed Vietnam People’s Navy,” he said.

The transfer of INS Kirpan from the Indian Navy to the Vietnam People’s Navy symbolises the status of the Indian Navy of being the ‘Preferred Security partner’ in the Indian Ocean Region and would be a catalyst for enhancing the existing bilateral relations between the two navies, the Navy said in a statement.

The development is significant amid a growing Chinese influence in the South China sea, which is giving rise to territorial disputes with Vietnam in the region. As a country, Vietnam has been a close Indian ally and has always resisted Chinese pressure on them over the years.

In a visit to Vietnam in June last year, defence minister Rajnath Singh met his counterpart in the country General Phan Van Giang in Hanoi. Several key decisions were taken during the visit, including on the finalisation of the $500 million Defence Line of Credit extended to Vietnam.

Both countries had signed a Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030 and had inked a pact on Mutual Logistics Support to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation between them.

India had then also handed over 12 high-speed guard boats to Vietnam at a ceremony at the Hong Ha Shipyard.

During the visit, the defence minister then had also announced gifting two simulators and monetary grant towards setting up of Language and IT Lab at Air Force Officers Training School for capacity building of Vietnamese Armed Forces.

Vietnam, among others, have been looking at buying BrahMos supersonic missiles from India.

The bilateral defence engagements between both countries have expanded over the years and includes wide-ranging contacts between the two countries, including Defence Policy Dialogues, military to military exchanges, high-level visits, capacity building and training programmes, cooperation in UN Peacekeeping, ship visits and bilateral exercises.