India on Saturday clarified that the recently concluded naval exercise held in Cape Town was not an official or institutionalised BRICS activity, stressing that it was a South African-led initiative in which only some BRICS members participated.

Responding to media queries regarding India’s non-participation in the exercise, referred to by some as a “BRICS naval exercise,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the characterization was inaccurate and misleading.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that the exercise, known as Exercise WILL FOR PEACE 2026, was neither a regular BRICS engagement nor one that included all BRICS countries. “We clarify that the exercise in question was entirely a South African initiative in which some BRICS members took part. It was not a regular or institutionalised BRICS activity, nor did all BRICS members take part in it,” he said.

Jaiswal further noted that India has not participated in similar past activities of this nature. He underlined that India’s established maritime engagement framework with BRICS partners in this context is the IBSAMAR exercise, which brings together the navies of India, Brazil, and South Africa.

“The regular exercise that India is a part of in this context is the IBSAMAR maritime exercise. The last edition of IBSAMAR was held in October 2024,” he added, reinforcing India’s consistent approach to multilateral naval cooperation.

According to South Africa’s defence ministry, Exercise WILL FOR PEACE 2026 was conducted in South African waters from January 9 to January 16. The exercise was described as a China-led, joint, interagency, inter-departmental, multinational naval drill involving select BRICS Plus countries.

In a statement issued on December 30, the South African government said the exercise aimed to enhance maritime cooperation among participating nations. “Exercise WILL FOR PEACE 2026 brings together navies from BRICS Plus countries for an intensive programme of joint maritime safety operations, interoperability drills and maritime protection serials,” the statement said.

The exercise was conducted under the theme “Joint Actions to Ensure the Safety of Shipping and Maritime Economic Activities,” reflecting a shared focus on safeguarding maritime trade routes, improving operational coordination, and supporting peaceful maritime security initiatives.

The Chinese Defence Ministry confirmed that the People’s Liberation Army Navy participated in the exercise with the guided-missile destroyer Tangshan and the comprehensive supply ship Taihu. Other participating vessels included Russia’s corvette Stoikiy and South Africa’s frigate Amatola.

According to the Chinese statement, the participating naval forces conducted formation manoeuvres under Chinese command and carried out drills focused on maritime strike operations, rescue of hijacked vessels, joint maritime search and rescue, and air defence. Additional exercises covered communications and anchorage ground defence, with an emphasis on coordination and interoperability among the multinational forces.

India’s clarification comes amid heightened attention on BRICS-related activities and underscores New Delhi’s position on maintaining clarity between formal BRICS mechanisms and ad hoc or country-led initiatives involving select member states.