India, Greece are forging a shared maritime future

India’s rise on the global stage has brought into sharper focus a set of issues related to connectivity between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. A central dimension of the strategic partnership between India and Greece that has been taking shape over the past two-three years draws upon a rich tapestry of maritime linkages between the two countries. These connections can be traced back to ancient times and are morphing into a multifaceted alliance between New Delhi and Athens in a variety of fields ranging from new trade routes and maritime security to addressing hybrid threats.

India’s rise on the global stage has brought into sharper focus a set of issues related to connectivity between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. A central dimension of the strategic partnership between India and Greece that has been taking shape over the past two-three years draws upon a rich tapestry of maritime linkages between the two countries. These connections can be traced back to ancient times and are morphing into a multifaceted alliance between New Delhi and Athens in a variety of fields ranging from new trade routes and maritime security to addressing hybrid threats.

The Historical Background

Alexander’s eastward march inaugurated a new phase of systematic maritime exchanges between India and Greece. Nearchus (ca. 360–300 BC), the commander of Alexander’s fleet, undertook in 325 BC an expedition from the Indus River to the Euphrates. Nearchus recorded his experiences in a travelogue, a summary of which has been incorporated in Arrian’s Indica (2^nd century AD).

India in Ancient Greek Accounts

The image of India as conveyed by Nearchus and other writers, such as Megasthenes (4^th century BC), the great historian, ethnographer, envoy of Emperor Seleucus I Nicator to Emperor Chandragupta Maurya’s court, and author of Indica, was the catalyst for the proliferation of Greek and Roman utopian narratives. These works echo earlier Greek philosophical theories (Plato etc.) and for the most part project India, especially the Indian Ocean, as the home to perfect societies.

This tendency is exemplified by Euhemerus’ (late 4^th–early 3^rd century BC) Sacred Inscription, which has survived in fragments in Diodorus Siculus’ Library of History. The Sacred Inscription is the description of the author’s imaginary voyage to the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean at the behest of his patron, King Cassander of Macedonia. Euhemerus relates that he reached an island, Panchaea, and offers a fulsome account of its location, social and political organization, and customs. In particular, he calls attention to the rich vegetation, plenitude of natural resources, mines of precious metals, the absence of private property, and the fact that the islanders promulgated their own laws and elected three chief magistrates instead of obeying a single ruler holding supreme authority. Euhemerus’ ideas inspired a pioneering figure of the ancient world, Aristonicus of Pergamum, to stage an abortive revolt from 133 to 129 BC against the Roman Republic and pledge to found a polity called Heliopolis (City of the Sun), characterized by egalitarianism and the abolition of slavery.

Another notable specimen of Hellenistic utopian travel literature attesting to India’s enduring appeal is the journey to the Island of the Sun by Iambulus (3^rd century BC), portions of which are preserved by Diodorus Siculus. Iambulus and one of his associates are captured and taken by brigands to the Ethiopian coast. After a six-month sojourn in the land of the Ethiopians, the two Greeks are asked to sail southward and look for an idyllic island, which can most probably be identified as Taprobane (present-day Sri Lanka). They receive a warm welcome from the islanders, who are depicted as being exceptional in terms of aesthetics and enjoying physical wellness, longevity, and extraordinary, quasi-superhuman qualities. Iambulus’ exposition extols the moderate climate, material plenitude, the common possession of women and children, and the temperance of the inhabitants. But after seven years, Iambulus and his companion become personae non gratae and are expelled. They are shipwrecked off the Indian coast. Iambulus’ comrade loses his life. Iambulus is brought by the locals to the court of the king at Palibothra (Pataliputra, near Patna), who is fond of Greeks, supports learning, and extends warm hospitality to his Greek guest. Subsequently, Iambulus, after obtaining a permission of safe-conduct, returns to Greece through Persia.

Maritime Encounters in Modern Era

After an abysmal lapse of 22 plus centuries, the first Greek military ship to enter the Indian Ocean since Nearchus’ time was the armoured cruiser Georgios Averof. Averof was the most formidable asset of the Royal Hellenic Navy in the first half of the 20^th century with a stellar trajectory in the Balkan Wars (1912–13), WWI, and WWII. A state-of-the-art vessel, it was constructed in Italy, arrived in Greece in 1911, and was decommissioned in 1952. Averof reached Bombay in September 1941 and returned to Egypt in November 1942. During its stay in the Indian subcontinent, it joined several missions in the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf. The activities of the battleship and life in Bombay in the early 1940s have been documented by a fascinating collection of photographs produced by Antonis Doukis, a sailor who served on Averof from 1941 till 1944. Similarly, another Greek warship, the cannon-class destroyer Aetos (Eagle) participated in the Royal Navy’s Indian Ocean campaign.

In July 2023, the Indian destroyer INS Chennai and the Greek frigate Nikiforos Fokas pursued passage exercises in the Aegean Sea, which included tactical manoeuvres, communication drills, and helicopter operations. These activities signalled the dedication of the Greek and Indian naval forces to bolstering interoperability and mutual understanding. A significant milestone in the Greco-Indian strategic partnership was the maiden visit of India’s Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi in September 2024 to Athens — just a few days after the arrival of the Indian Navy’s frontline frigate INS Tabar in the Greek island of Crete. One of the key takeaways of Admiral Tripathi’s deliberations with high-level Greek defence officials was the focus on boosting synergies on both the strategic and operational levels in naval capacity building, interoperability, and training. The Hellenic and Indian navies conducted a joint naval drill in February 2025 in the Arabian Sea on the heels of the International Defence Exhibition (IDEX) & the Naval Defence and Maritime Security Exhibition (NAVDEX) 2025 in Abu Dhabi.

Greece, India and Maritime Security

Greece and India share a firm commitment to a free and open maritime order anchored upon the principles of the International Law of the Sea, as enshrined in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Both nations are well-placed to foster cooperation in the maritime domain across the Eastern Mediterranean, Red Sea, and Indian Ocean to ensure regional stability and freedom of navigation. As their strategic ambitions increasingly converge, there are ample opportunities for joint initiatives that can strengthen maritime security.

In the Red Sea, Greece has spearheaded the EU-sponsored naval operation Aspides (the name derives from Greek and means “shields”). Aspides is coordinated by a Greek admiral in Larissa (central Greece), and its objective is to guarantee freedom of navigation, maritime security, particularly for commercial vessels, in the Red Sea, the Indian Ocean, and the Persian Gulf in accord with the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). Greece has played a crucial role in European endeavours to protect shipping lanes, while India has intensified its naval presence through renewed maritime security operations aimed at safeguarding critical trade pathways. These parallel efforts could enhance the safety of maritime corridors, which are threatened by piracy and hybrid attacks, through joint patrols, intelligence sharing, and operational coordination.

Moreover, growing strategic ties, such as defence and port cooperation, in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean open up additional prospects for collaboration. Greek participation in regional maritime surveillance networks and India’s use of Mediterranean port infrastructure would bolster bilateral ties and help maintain regional stability and resilience. Together, both nations stand to make a substantial contribution to upholding maritime freedom across the three aforementioned strategically vital waterways.

Strategic Convergence

A number of topics pertaining to maritime connectivity between the EU/Greece and India, the regional ramifications of China’s maritime policy, and, more broadly, foresight in international security were recently discussed at the First Strategic Foresight Workshop which was curated by the Metis Institute for Strategy and Foresight at the Universität der Bundeswehr München, the University of the German armed forces. The event was held in Athens on 27 and 28 February 2025 and brought together government officials, military experts, and scholars from Greece, Germany, the UK, and India. In May 2025, Metis signed a technical arrangement in the field of academic research with the National Maritime Foundation (NMF), India’s premier think tank for maritime research. The agreement underscores the aspiration of both parties to create a robust platform for knowledge exchange that will also involve Metis’ partners in Greece, the UK, and Brazil, and can have a more palpable impact on policy making.

The commitment of PM Narendra Modi’s government to recovering India’s indigenous naval heritage will necessitate more comprehensive research into how it interacted with other traditions and knowledge systems. Resuscitating civilizational bonds and refashioning modes of maritime connectivity that existed in the past can enhance awareness of India’s role in history as a sea power. Amplifying the scope of New Delhi’s agenda to reconsider links between Greece and India in light of concrete historical precedents has the potential to help deepen strategic cooperation between the two nations in the maritime domain and generate a more nuanced understanding of the intricate dynamics of the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean regions.

Prof Vasileios Syros is Director of the Early Modern Greek Culture Program at The Medici Archive Project (Florence, Italy). He served as Greek Chair Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University.

 

Ends

Alexander’s eastward march inaugurated a new phase of systematic maritime exchanges between India and Greece. Nearchus (ca. 360–300 BC), the commander of Alexander’s fleet, undertook in 325 BC an expedition from the Indus River to the Euphrates. Nearchus recorded his experiences in a travelogue, a summary of which has been incorporated in Arrian’s Indica (2^nd century AD).

India in Ancient Greek Accounts

The image of India as conveyed by Nearchus and other writers, such as Megasthenes (4^th century BC), the great historian, ethnographer, envoy of Emperor Seleucus I Nicator to Emperor Chandragupta Maurya’s court, and author of Indica, was the catalyst for the proliferation of Greek and Roman utopian narratives. These works echo earlier Greek philosophical theories (Plato etc.) and for the most part project India, especially the Indian Ocean, as the home to perfect societies.

This tendency is exemplified by Euhemerus’ (late 4^th–early 3^rd century BC) Sacred Inscription, which has survived in fragments in Diodorus Siculus’ Library of History. The Sacred Inscription is the description of the author’s imaginary voyage to the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean at the behest of his patron, King Cassander of Macedonia. Euhemerus relates that he reached an island, Panchaea, and offers a fulsome account of its location, social and political organization, and customs. In particular, he calls attention to the rich vegetation, plenitude of natural resources, mines of precious metals, the absence of private property, and the fact that the islanders promulgated their own laws and elected three chief magistrates instead of obeying a single ruler holding supreme authority. Euhemerus’ ideas inspired a pioneering figure of the ancient world, Aristonicus of Pergamum, to stage an abortive revolt from 133 to 129 BC against the Roman Republic and pledge to found a polity called Heliopolis (City of the Sun), characterized by egalitarianism and the abolition of slavery.

Another notable specimen of Hellenistic utopian travel literature attesting to India’s enduring appeal is the journey to the Island of the Sun by Iambulus (3^rd century BC), portions of which are preserved by Diodorus Siculus. Iambulus and one of his associates are captured and taken by brigands to the Ethiopian coast. After a six-month sojourn in the land of the Ethiopians, the two Greeks are asked to sail southward and look for an idyllic island, which can most probably be identified as Taprobane (present-day Sri Lanka). They receive a warm welcome from the islanders, who are depicted as being exceptional in terms of aesthetics and enjoying physical wellness, longevity, and extraordinary, quasi-superhuman qualities. Iambulus’ exposition extols the moderate climate, material plenitude, the common possession of women and children, and the temperance of the inhabitants. But after seven years, Iambulus and his companion become personae non gratae and are expelled. They are shipwrecked off the Indian coast. Iambulus’ comrade loses his life. Iambulus is brought by the locals to the court of the king at Palibothra (Pataliputra, near Patna), who is fond of Greeks, supports learning, and extends warm hospitality to his Greek guest. Subsequently, Iambulus, after obtaining a permission of safe-conduct, returns to Greece through Persia.

Maritime Encounters in Modern Era

After an abysmal lapse of 22 plus centuries, the first Greek military ship to enter the Indian Ocean since Nearchus’ time was the armoured cruiser Georgios Averof. Averof was the most formidable asset of the Royal Hellenic Navy in the first half of the 20^th century with a stellar trajectory in the Balkan Wars (1912–13), WWI, and WWII. A state-of-the-art vessel, it was constructed in Italy, arrived in Greece in 1911, and was decommissioned in 1952. Averof reached Bombay in September 1941 and returned to Egypt in November 1942. During its stay in the Indian subcontinent, it joined several missions in the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf. The activities of the battleship and life in Bombay in the early 1940s have been documented by a fascinating collection of photographs produced by Antonis Doukis, a sailor who served on Averof from 1941 till 1944. Similarly, another Greek warship, the cannon-class destroyer Aetos (Eagle) participated in the Royal Navy’s Indian Ocean campaign.

In July 2023, the Indian destroyer INS Chennai and the Greek frigate Nikiforos Fokas pursued passage exercises in the Aegean Sea, which included tactical manoeuvres, communication drills, and helicopter operations. These activities signalled the dedication of the Greek and Indian naval forces to bolstering interoperability and mutual understanding. A significant milestone in the Greco-Indian strategic partnership was the maiden visit of India’s Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi in September 2024 to Athens — just a few days after the arrival of the Indian Navy’s frontline frigate INS Tabar in the Greek island of Crete. One of the key takeaways of Admiral Tripathi’s deliberations with high-level Greek defence officials was the focus on boosting synergies on both the strategic and operational levels in naval capacity building, interoperability, and training. The Hellenic and Indian navies conducted a joint naval drill in February 2025 in the Arabian Sea on the heels of the International Defence Exhibition (IDEX) & the Naval Defence and Maritime Security Exhibition (NAVDEX) 2025 in Abu Dhabi.

Greece, India and Maritime Security

Greece and India share a firm commitment to a free and open maritime order anchored upon the principles of the International Law of the Sea, as enshrined in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Both nations are well-placed to foster cooperation in the maritime domain across the Eastern Mediterranean, Red Sea, and Indian Ocean to ensure regional stability and freedom of navigation. As their strategic ambitions increasingly converge, there are ample opportunities for joint initiatives that can strengthen maritime security.

In the Red Sea, Greece has spearheaded the EU-sponsored naval operation Aspides (the name derives from Greek and means “shields”). Aspides is coordinated by a Greek admiral in Larissa (central Greece), and its objective is to guarantee freedom of navigation, maritime security, particularly for commercial vessels, in the Red Sea, the Indian Ocean, and the Persian Gulf in accord with the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). Greece has played a crucial role in European endeavours to protect shipping lanes, while India has intensified its naval presence through renewed maritime security operations aimed at safeguarding critical trade pathways. These parallel efforts could enhance the safety of maritime corridors, which are threatened by piracy and hybrid attacks, through joint patrols, intelligence sharing, and operational coordination.

Moreover, growing strategic ties, such as defence and port cooperation, in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean open up additional prospects for collaboration. Greek participation in regional maritime surveillance networks and India’s use of Mediterranean port infrastructure would bolster bilateral ties and help maintain regional stability and resilience. Together, both nations stand to make a substantial contribution to upholding maritime freedom across the three aforementioned strategically vital waterways.

Strategic Convergence

A number of topics pertaining to maritime connectivity between the EU/Greece and India, the regional ramifications of China’s maritime policy, and, more broadly, foresight in international security were recently discussed at the First Strategic Foresight Workshop which was curated by the Metis Institute for Strategy and Foresight at the Universität der Bundeswehr München, the University of the German armed forces. The event was held in Athens on 27 and 28 February 2025 and brought together government officials, military experts, and scholars from Greece, Germany, the UK, and India. In May 2025, Metis signed a technical arrangement in the field of academic research with the National Maritime Foundation (NMF), India’s premier think tank for maritime research. The agreement underscores the aspiration of both parties to create a robust platform for knowledge exchange that will also involve Metis’ partners in Greece, the UK, and Brazil, and can have a more palpable impact on policy making.

The commitment of PM Narendra Modi’s government to recovering India’s indigenous naval heritage will necessitate more comprehensive research into how it interacted with other traditions and knowledge systems. Resuscitating civilizational bonds and refashioning modes of maritime connectivity that existed in the past can enhance awareness of India’s role in history as a sea power. Amplifying the scope of New Delhi’s agenda to reconsider links between Greece and India in light of concrete historical precedents has the potential to help deepen strategic cooperation between the two nations in the maritime domain and generate a more nuanced understanding of the intricate dynamics of the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean regions.

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