Indian Navy Chief receives Māori welcome in Auckland

Indian Navy Admiral Swaminathan met New Zealand Chief of Navy Rear Admiral Garin Golding at Devonport Naval Base in Auckland on Monday, as the two countries continue to strengthen their defence and maritime relationship.

According to a report by NZDF, Admiral Swaminathan received a Guard of Honour before being welcomed onto the Navy’s marae, Te Taua Moana. The visit was followed by presentations and discussions at the Maritime Warfare Training Centre.

As part of the visit, Admiral Swaminathan and his delegation also viewed the turret of HMNZS Achilles at the entrance to Devonport. The Second World War light cruiser was sold to India in 1948 and renamed INS Delhi. India later donated the turret back to New Zealand in 1980, as reported by NZDF.

The visit comes amid growing defence cooperation between India and New Zealand. In 2025, Prime Ministers Christopher Luxon and Narendra Modi signed the India-New Zealand Memorandum of Understanding for Defence Cooperation.

The same year, the Indian Navy took up the deputy commander position for the New Zealand-led Combined Task Force 150, which conducts drug-interdiction operations in the Indian Ocean, as reported by NZDF.

Further progress followed in 2026, with New Zealand’s first resident Defence Advisor to India beginning their posting in Delhi in February. During Prime Minister Modi’s visit to New Zealand in July, the two countries also signed three maritime-focused agreements covering maritime cooperation, hydrography and logistics support, NZDF has reported.

Rear Admiral Golding said the relationship between the two countries’ defence forces was built on their shared history, values and interests.

“Today it is the Navy-to-Navy relationship that is most developed, with ship visits to New Zealand, a successful partnership in Combined Task Force 150, HMNZS Te Kaha’s visit to Mumbai last year, and the arrival of our first resident Defence Adviser, Commodore Andy Dowling, in Delhi, NZDF has quoted.

“We value highly our relationship with India. We both have an interest in a free, open and secure Indo-Pacific region, and look forward to working together more often in the coming years,” as quoted by NZDF.