Padang, W Sumatra (ANTARA News) - Indonesia will host the Multilateral Naval Exercise Komodo (MNEK) 2016 in the waters of Padang of West Sumatra Province on April 12-16, 2016, to strengthen maritime cooperation in the humanitarian sector.

"Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Navy Admiral Ade Supandi has planned to open the Final Planning Conference of MNEK tomorrow and will visit several zones of MNEK training," Head of the MNEK 2016 Task Force First Admiral Hutabarat stated here on Monday.

Several delegations from foreign countries will attend the conference to finalize the plan to host a joint exercise by giving suggestions, Hutabarat added.

According to Hutabarat, the committee noted that until now, 22 ships from 16 countries had confirmed their participation in the event.

He believes that the total number of participants will increase in the coming days.

Hutabarat explained that the task force had cooperated with the West Sumatra provincial administration, Padang city administration, and the Mentawai Islands administration to ensure the success of the joint exercise.

The MNEK 2016 is the second joint exercise to be held by the Indonesian Navy. The first MNEK was held in Batam Island, Anambas Islands, and Natuna Island.

According to Hutabarat, the MNEK will focus on non-war fighting exercise that prioritizes humanitarian aid and sharing knowledge on maritime security efforts. (*)

Editor: Heru Purwanto
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