New Delhi, Sep 23 (IANS): An Indian Army contingent consisting of 32 personnel from a Rajputana Rifles battalion has departed for Russia to participate in a counter terrorism field training exercise scheduled to be conducted from September 25 to 30, the Defence Ministry announced on Saturday.

The multinational joint military exercise being hosted by Russia is part of the ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting Plus Expert Working Group on Counter Terrorism. Russia is a co-chair of the EWG along with Myanmar.

Since 2017, the meet is held annually to allow dialogue and cooperation among Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Plus countries.

The exercise will comprise of a number of counter terrorism drills including destroying of terrorist groups in a fortified area. The main objective of the exercise is strengthening and promoting regional cooperation in the field of counter-terrorism.

It will provide the Indian army with a platform to share their expertise and best practices in counter-terrorism operations besides increasing cooperation between other 12 participating countries. Indian Army is also expected to enrich its professional experience from the exercise.