The perception that the Indian Ocean is India’s “backyard” may result in clashes, Chinese military officials and experts have reportedly cautioned according to media reports.
Chinese navy’s presence in the Indian Ocean comes in the backdrop of the release of a White Paper published by the People’s Liberation Army, outlining a new military strategy enhancing its navy’s duties for the first time to “open seas protection” far from its shores, says a PTI report.
China’s sharp and prompt reaction to the Indo-US joint statement during Obama’s visit in January this year, was a clear indication of how important the India Ocean, specifically the South China Sea has become in 21st century geopolitics. “Regional prosperity depends on security. We affirm the importance of safeguarding maritime security and ensuring freedom of navigation and over flight throughout the region, especially in the South China Sea,” said the US-India Joint Strategic Vision for the Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean Region, released by President Obama and Prime Minister Modi.
China, which saw this as meddling by a third country, had come out with a strong statement.
We have made our position clear on this issue many times. China is staunch supporter promoter and contributor to regional peace and stability. We believe relevant disputes should be resolved by parties directly concerned through peaceful talks and consultation.
The Indian Ocean is the world’s third largest body of water but undoubtedly the most important when it comes to the future of geopolitics in the 21st century. If Europe was centre-stage for most global conflicts, in the last century, including two World Wars, it is the Indian Ocean that will be the arena for power play in the 21st century.
Be it military posturing, global power plays, the scramble for energy self-sufficiency of even the clash of civilisations, this oceanic stretch will be the battle ground. As Robert Kaplan, chief geopolitical analyst at Stratfor and prolific writer on foreign affairs writes: “It is more than just a geographic feature, the Indian Ocean is also an idea. It combines the centrality of Islam with global energy politics and the rise of India and China to reveal a multilayered, multipolar world.”
Without adequate maritime power, it will be impossible for countries to control this stretch of water bounded by Asia on the north, Africa on the west and Australia on the east. Not surprisingly, both China and India have been beefing up their navies and rolling out their respective strategies for dominance.
China has its ‘String of Pearls’ policy, quoted extensively by the Indian media. It refers to the facilities and relationships China has struck up with key countries in the region, extending from the Chinese mainland to Port Sudan. With its trade corridors running through the Strait of Mandeb, Strait of Malacca, Strait of Hormuz and the Lombok Strait, China has carefully nurtured relationships and friendly ties with countries like Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Maldives and Somalia.
This has helped China install military and commercial facilities like ports, airfields and listening posts that straddle its sea lines, though the Chinese government has always maintained that its naval strategy – spelt out in a 350 page Blue book - is entirely peaceful in nature and designed solely for the protection of its regional trade interests.
India, in the early 90s countered with what is referred to as the Look East policy, an initiative to cultivate strategic and economic relations with South East Asian nations. After Modi took over as Prime Minister he has talked about emergising the Look East Policy to an Act East one. India hopes that eventually a network of east-west roads and energy pipelines will allow it to be connected to Iran, Pakistan, and Myanmar.
Most of the world’s busiest shipping lines pass through the Indian Ocean region. It is also home to very large reserves of oil and energy. This scramble has led to territorial disputes, like the much publicised spat over Spratly and Paracel islands. Cooperation between China, India and the US will be essential to ensure that the strategic objectives of all are met and the region does turn into an “ocean of conflict.”
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)