Singapore, India kick off naval exercises

The navies of India and Singapore have kicked off joint exercises to improve their anti-piracy skills in one of the world's busiest sea lanes, officials said Wednesday. An Indian naval spokesman said the nine-day drill, codenamed Simbex, began Tuesday in the Andaman Sea off India's eastern coast but will also spill into the South China Sea. "This year's exercise will be the 16th in the Simbex series and the operational relationship between the two navies has matured to a point where standard operating procedures are well in place on both sides," he added.