The 12-14 May visit is Richardson's second visit to India as the Chief of US Naval Operations. Richardson is expected to meet all key officials and leaders to discuss India-US defence cooperation

US Navy chief Admiral John Richardson began a visit to India on Monday with meetings with his counterpart and other senior officers with cooperation between the two navies in the Indo-Pacific region in against the backdrop of a rising China taking centre stage in the discussions.

The 12-14 May visit is Richardson's second visit to India as the Chief of US Naval Operations. It is also his last tour through the region given that he retires on 31 May.

In the national capital, Richardson is expected to meet all key officials and leaders to discuss India-US defence cooperation that has grown spectacularly in recent years, a defence official said. Besides rising interaction between the militaries of the two countries, India is now one of the top purchasers of US arms—unthinkable till a few decades ago. Last month, the US approved the sale of 24 multi-role MH-60 'Romeo' Seahawk helicopters to India at an estimated cost of $2.4 billion. The Lockheed Martin built choppers are designed for hunting submarines besides conducting search-and-rescue operations at sea and are to replace India's aging fleet of British-made Sea King helicopters.

“Team, I just arrived in India and am looking forward to meeting with senior Indian defense officials and naval partners. We share a desire to strengthen our partnership and ensure security in the Indo-Pacific," Richardson said in a Twitter post on Sunday, soon after his arrival in New Delhi.

Richardson’s visit comes days after two Indian naval ships joined hands with the navies of the US, the Philippines and Japan a “Group Sail" through the disputed South China Sea. According to news reports, the “Group Sail" through could be taken as India, US and Japan backing Philippines in its claims over parts of the South China Sea disputed with China.

In a statement last week the US Navy said the visit "aims to further strengthen the strategic partnership between the two navies by emphasising the importance of information sharing and exchange."

"The strategic environment is becoming more complex and the nature of our shared challenges requires frequent discussion of our views of the maritime domain and how best our two navies can operate in line with our respective objectives," it said.

The Indo-Pacific is a vast geographical swathe in land and ocean that includes countries starting from the east coast of Africa to the west coast of the US, including the contested South China Sea. China claims almost the entire South China Sea, while Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan are also claimants.