Oman: The Indian Navy has confirmed it will sustain its continuous maritime security deployment in the Gulf of Oman despite the normalisation of merchant shipping and crude oil transit through the critical Strait of Hormuz bottleneck. Known as Operation Sankalp, this long-standing mission ensures that Indian warships will remain permanently stationed at the mouth of the strait to safeguard vital sea lanes of communication and offer escort services to India-bound commercial cargo vessels if security conditions dictate.
Initiated in June 2019 following heightened regional friction, Operation Sankalp involves the constant deployment of at least one major surface combatant equipped with an embarked utility helicopter and a detachment of marine commandos. During periods of peak tension, the naval command has historically scaled up its presence by forming independent task forces to escort liquefied petroleum gas and crude oil carriers through the 33-kilometre-wide strait. This protective strategy has been managed entirely independently by New Delhi, avoiding formal alignment with multi-nation international coalitions.
Maintaining a blue-water presence in these waters is structurally vital for domestic energy security, given that more than 60 per cent of the country’s oil imports traverse this specific corridor. To maintain high operational readiness without returning to home ports, the Indian Navy utilizes strategic logistical arrangements at Omani ports such as Duqm and Salalah for replenishment, alongside mid-sea liquid and dry cargo transfers via specialized fleet tankers. This strategic operation runs parallel to India’s other protracted maritime security commitment, the anti-piracy patrol in the Gulf of Aden, which has been operational since 2008.
