Uttarkhand State in northern India.
The joint wargame "Yudh Abhyas 2016" will again see men of the Indian Army and the U.S. Army train together in mountainous conditions to fight insurgency and terrorism.
The new exercise from Sept. 14 to 27 will be the twelfth staging of this joint exercise hosted alternately by India and the U.S. It will take place at the settlement of Chaubattia in the Almora District of Uttarakhand State in northern India, which shares a long border with China.
The wargame also comes two weeks after India and the United States signed the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) that will allow the military forces of both nations to use each other's military bases in the Indo-Pacific region.
The agreement will give each nation access to supplies, spare parts and services from each other's land facilities, air bases and ports.
Yudh Abhyas 2016 is part of the ongoing defense cooperation program between India and the United States. The exercise will be conducted by the headquarters of the Central Command of the Indian Army. Uttarakhand counts among the seven states in the north defended by Central Command.
Based at neighboring Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, Central Command is one of the seven operational commands in the army. The unit's commander is Lt. Gen. B S Negi.
Yudh Abhyas 2016 is one of the longest running joint military training and a major ongoing bilateral defense cooperation exercises between India and the U.S. The exercise will simulate a scenario where both nations fight together to counter insurgents and terrorists attacking through mountainous terrain.
The exercise will also see soldiers from each country become better acquainted with each other's weapons, equipment, tactical drills and organizational structure. Much of the Indian Army's military hardware is of Russian origin or are license-built copies made in India.
The two week-long drill will involve 225 U.S. Army personnel and men of the Congo Brigade of the Indian Army. Highlight of the exercise will be a large joint operation against "terrorist forces."
LEMOA will immensely aid the U.S. in the massive redeployment of its military forces to Asia as part of the "Pivot to East Asia" because its forces can operate out of India's military bases on the Indian mainland instead of having to build new military bases.
For its part, India will have access to U.S. bases in the Indian Ocean such as the one on Diego Garcia atoll in the Chagos Archipelago. China is expanding its naval presence in the Indian Ocean and as part of this strategy will build a military base on the Seychelles and will open its first overseas naval base in Djibouti in 2017.
