Kuala Lumpur [Malaysia], August 12 (ANI): A contingent of Indian Air Force (IAF) has arrived in Malaysia to participate in a bilateral air exercise 'Udarashakti' with their Malaysian counterparts.

Participating with Su-30 MKI aircraft, supported by C-17 and IL-78 Air-to-Air refueller aircraft, the Indian Air Force contingent will carry out complex aerial missions and share best practices with the Royal Malaysian Air Force, IAF said.

Earlier, the Indian Air Force contingent left for Malaysia on Friday to participate in the bilateral exercise. This is the first bilateral exercise being conducted between Indian Air Force and Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF).

The Indian contingent departed from one of its air bases directly for their destination, the RMAF base of Kuantan. The exercise will give an opportunity to IAF contingent members to share and learn best practices with some of the best professionals from RMAF, while also discussing mutual combat capabilities.

The four days of exercise will witness conduct of various aerial combat drills between the 2 Air Forces. Exercise Udarashakti will fortify the long-standing bond of friendship and enhance the avenues of defence cooperation between the two Air Forces, thereby augmenting security in the region.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh discussed a wide range of issues including bilateral, regional and defence industrial cooperation with Malaysian counterpart Hishamuddin bin Hussein on Sunday.

During a video conference, Rajnath Singh congratulated Dato 'Seri HishammuddinTun Hussein for assuming the office of the Senior Defence Minister in August last year, an official statement issued by the Ministry of Defence read.Both Ministers expressed the intent to further boost the already strong India-Malaysia Defence cooperation.The two Ministers discussed the existing defence cooperation activities and framework, and ways to further enhance them under the existing Malaysia-India Defence Cooperation Meeting (MIDCOM) framework.

According to the statement, the next MIDCOM is scheduled to be held in July this year, and it was decided to use this platform for a deeper engagement in defence.Rajnath Singh during the video conference highlighted the areas in which Indian Defence industries could assist Malaysia.He suggested a visit of senior officers from Malaysia to India to get a first-hand experience of the facilities and products of Indian Defence industry.The Malaysian Senior Defence Minister expressed the need for inducting women personnel in peace keeping missions. Both sides agreed to engage each other on this issue. It was also agreed to upgrade capability for Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations.Defence Minister also invited Senior Defence Minister of Malaysia to visit India at an early convenient date to discuss closer and strategic defence ties, as per the statement. (ANI)