PANAJI
The 5th edition of the Goa Maritime Conclave (GMC-26) was held at the Naval War College, Goa, on February 21, 2026. The event brought together chiefs of navies and senior maritime leaders from 15 Indian Ocean Region (IOR) nations. The conclave reaffirmed the shared commitment of regional partners to strengthen cooperation in tackling maritime security challenges in the region.
Organised by the Indian Navy under the theme ‘Common Maritime Security Challenges in the IOR – Progressing Lines of Efforts to Mitigate Dynamic Threats’, GMC-26 highlighted India’s role in promoting structured maritime dialogue and collaborative security efforts. The conclave focused on practical outcomes and joint implementation.
In his keynote address, Admiral Arun Prakash (Retd), former Chief of Naval Staff, stressed that the changing maritime security environment requires coordinated regional responses, real-time information sharing and sustained capacity building. He said issues such as illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, trafficking and other transnational crimes need shared responsibility among IOR nations.
The first session discussed improving real-time maritime information sharing and operational coordination to counter illegal activities. The second session focused on strengthening capacity building and capability enhancement among maritime agencies through training, professional exchanges and institutional cooperation.
The conclave ended with addresses by chiefs of navies and heads of delegations sharing national perspectives on collaborative efforts. Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi thanked partner nations and stressed the need to move from shared awareness to coordinated action through technology, seamless information sharing and focused operations under the MAHASAGAR vision.
