Shillong, Dec 28: The 6th edition of the Indo-Kazakhstan Joint exercise – The Exercise KazInd 2022, concluded on Tuesday at the Joint Training Node, Umroi Cantonment, Ri Bhoi District.

The 14-day long exercise aimed at building trust and understanding of each other and working together between the two countries -India and Kazakhstan, in the pursuit of cooperation in the field of national security.

The Exercise added another jewel in the crown of success of Indo-Kazakhstan bilateral relations which has developed into a ‘Global Strategic Partnership’, based on shared democratic values and increasing convergence of interests on bilateral, regional and global issues.

As the relationship between both the countries grows from strength to strength, the countries now conduct more bilateral exercises with each other than they do with any other country. Both the armies have gained good operational experience and use the same judiciously wherever they are deployed. The exercise has had a deep and beneficial impact on the operational capabilities of both the armies.

The first Indo-Kazakhstan Exercise was held in Kazakhstan in 2016 at Karagandy by 1/9 GR. The Exercise was then called Prabal Dostyk and it was a platoon level exercise back then. In 2017, the then COAS of Indian Army visited Kazakhstan and proposed strategic partnership with Kazakhstan. Thereafter, the joint exercise was upgraded to company level exercise. Till now, 5 editions of KAZIND have been held.

The Final Validation Exercise named as Ex Jenis (Ex Victory) involves display of various skills inculcated such as patrolling, jungle shooting, reflex shooting, change of MRE Rations, survival, and combat tracking, multi modular insertion of troops through air via slithering and low hovering and use of Mine Protective Vehicles, conduct of raid, room intervention and house clearing drills and unarmed combat display. The Exercise will show the intra-operationability between both the countries according to the UN Mandate.