SCANNING THE WATERS
The Indian Navy has stepped up surveillance and activities in the Indian Ocean Region:
INDIAN SURVEILLANCE India is keeping tabs on China’s aggressive moves in the South China Sea and taking steps to ensure that the Chinese navy doesn’t muscle its way into the Indian Ocean, where combat-ready Indian warships are carrying out round-the-clock surveillance. The navy recently conducted joint drills with a US Navy carrier strike group, led by USS Nimitz, and Indian and Japanese warships have carried out exercises in the Indian Ocean
MALACCA DILEMMA This refers to China’s apprehension of naval powers controlling the Malacca Strait. A significant volume of China’s oil imports pass through the strait connecting the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea
EYE ON CHINA The multiple routes that China could be looking at to enter the Indian Ocean are further south of Malacca and include the Sunda, Lombok, Ombai and Wetar straits
“It is inevitable that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army-navy (PLAN) will come to IOR if China wants to become a global power. They are opening multiple routes to the Indian Ocean...” – A top Indian Navy officer