 Navy Wargames US Navy's Pacific Commander Timothy J Keating observed that Indo-US military ties had become "more robust" but side stepped questions about opposition from the Left parties to the upcoming Malabar exercise, merely saying, "It is what democracy is all about."
The four-day Malabar exercise beginning on September 4, which will see the biggest congregation of warships in the Bay of Bengal since the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war, is a reflection of the "shared interest" of India, US, Australia and Singapore, Keating told reporters.
At the same time, he said, "We want to minimise the potential areas of misunderstanding and confusion between all of us and China."
The manouvres are not aimed at forming a "quadilateral front" against China, said Keating, who is on a four-day visit here to discuss ties between the navies of India and the US.
"Let me emphasise, there is is no effort on our part or any of these other countries (participating in the exercises) to isolate China or put Beijing in a closet," Keating said.
 US Navy Fleet
Bureau Report
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