Prime Minister Narendra Modi clicks a picture during dedication of the India-Seychelles cooperation project ‘Coastal Surveillance Radar System’ in Mahe, Seychelles.
The last post was about PM Narendra Modi’s ‘Act East Policy’ and the manner in which he has played the role of a seasoned diplomate, steered foreign perception of India in a bid to make the country a member of global solutions facing the world. This article continues where it left off with PM Modi’s Indian Ocean policy initiative.
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Indian Ocean policy initiative in Modi era
The Indian Ocean region (IOR), which has long been considered as India’s nautical backyard, is steadily turning into a hotspot thanks to growing Chinese strategic presence over the region’s numerous strategically located archipelagos.
To counter the recent moves made by China in the name of President Xi’s pet ‘Maritime Silk Road’ project, India started to reach out to its maritime neighbour’s in the IOR with proposals of enhanced economic and security cooperation.
The policy towards IOR started to unfold during Sri Lankan president’s visit to New Delhi in early February 2015. Following that Modi embarked on a three nations Yatraa (pilgrimage) to Mauritius, Seychelles and Sri Lanka,the three key Indian Ocean island nations. There were suggestions that the prime minister would visit Maldives as well, but it was dropped from the itinerary following the arrest and incarceration of that country’s first democratically elected president and current opposition leader, Mohamed Nasheed.
The visit by the Indian prime minister to the nation’s maritime neighbours is reflective of India’s desire to shore up its profile ties in the Indian Ocean region, a region long considered India’s backyard but where New Delhi’s influence has been eroding slowly but steadily.
India was expressing its disapproval.
Here it is very important to understand that Mohamed Nasheed was a pro Indian president and Maldives is one of most strategic island nation to India. The regime change was game of China and Pakistan to encircle India with our past Prime Minister being either asleep or busy in scams.
It was interesting to see that ahead of Modi’s scheduled visit to Beijing in May 2015, India successfully projected that it commands a strategic supremacy over the IOR and its relations with its maritime neighbour’s are far more cordial than that of China’s with particular reference to South China sea.
With my 10 years personal experience in South Africa and nearby African countries, what I experienced was that China flooded these nations with cheap products right from slippers to cars. The result, local production shut down, high level of unemployment and local government falling in Chinese trap.
Whereas, India’s approach is to develop these small nations and build strength with mutual development, a process which take long time but is ever lasting.
As I said in my previous post, in last 10 years India’s External Affair Ministry was nothing more than an “Award Ministry” for the one who showed more loyalty to dynasty. One such brilliant example is UPA External Affair minister Salman Kurshid.
In May 2013, India’s External Affair Minister Salman Kurshid visited China. The Chinese expressed no regret for their intrusion into eastern Ladakh, which has been billed as the most serious border incident with Beijing in many years. But foreign minister Salman Khurshid enamored by his Chinese hosts gushed that he would “love to live in Beijing.”
This casual approach in India’s MEA was changed by Modi government. Now approach was more dynamic with a clear vision and objectives and hence his government acted on South China Sea from day one.
The prime minister indicated a major stepping up of India’s military and civilian assistance to the Seychelles, Mauritius and Sri Lanka during his visit in an effort to balance China’s growing imprint in the region, which has built highways, power plants and seaports in these small island nations.
India envisages its role as a net security provider in the Indian Ocean region, and towards that end, it is providing patrol ships, surveillance radars and ocean mapping for the island states.
The visit by the Indian prime minister to the nation’s maritime neighbours is reflective of India’s desire to shore up its profile ties in the Indian Ocean region, a region long considered India’s backyard but where New Delhi’s influence has been eroding slowly but steadily.
China’s attempt to gain a foothold in the Indian Ocean came into stark relief in 2012 when reports emerged of an offer from Seychelles, a strategically located island nation in the Indian Ocean, to host a Chinese base to provide relief and resupply facilities to the People’s Liberation Army Navy. Although Beijing promptly denied the offer and India ignored the opportunity like we did in Sri Lanka, it underscored the changing balance of power in the region.
It is a well known fact that The South China Sea will be the battleground of the future. As per Pentagon report, China has expanded construction of manmade islands in the South China Sea to a total of nearly 3,000 acres and is taking steps to militarize the islands for power projection capabilities. As per report, “Asia-Pacific Maritime Strategy,” is the Obama administration’s first dedicated study of the increasing destabilization of a vital economic waterway that China is claiming as its maritime domain.
“The infrastructure China appears to be building would enable it to establish a more robust power projection presence into the South China Sea,” the 40-page report says.
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“Its latest land reclamation and construction will also allow it to berth deeper draft ships at outposts; expand its law enforcement and naval presence farther south into the South China Sea; and potentially operate aircraft, possibly as a divert airstrip for carrier-based aircraft that could enable China to conduct sustained operations with aircraft carriers in the area.”
This Chinese artificial Island is exactly like US Diego Garcia island, a US Military base.
Diego Garcia is an atoll located south of the equator in the central Indian Ocean. Diego Garcia is the largest of the 60 small islands comprising the Chagos Archipelago.
Diego Garcia was settled by the French in the 1790s and was transferred to British rule after the Napoleonic Wars. It was one of the “Dependencies” of the British Colony of Mauritius until it was detached for inclusion in the newly created British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) in 1965.
Between 1968 and 1973, the population of the BIOT was removed to Mauritius and The Seychelles, following which the United States built a large naval and military base on Diego Garcia, which has been in continuous operation ever since. As of March 2015, Diego Garcia is the only inhabited island of the BIOT; the population is composed of military personnel and supporting contractors.
This atoll is located 3,535 km (2,197 mi) east of Tanzania’s coast, 1,796 km (1,116 mi) south-southwest of the southern tip of India (at Kanyakumari) and 4,723 km (2,935 mi) west-northwest of the west coast of Australia. Diego Garcia lies at the southernmost tip of the Chagos-Laccadive Ridge, a vast submarine mountain range, top of coral reefs, atolls, and islands comprising Lakshadweep,The Maldives, and the Chagos Archipelago.
In March 2014, when MH370 disappeared, I did some research and discovered a major role played by Diego Garcia island. The details are available on my blog. The surprising part is that what I wrote on my blog just within 19 days of disappearance, each and every information I shared is coming out true.
Below are three pictures of Diego Garcia including geo location, close-up and arial view.
In my previous post, I wrote about Indian Government achievements from Prime Minister visit to Sri Lanka but to connect well with this post once again we need to know government strategy in Sri Lanka along with Seychelles and Mauritius.
It is a well known fact that The South China Sea will be the battleground of the future. As per Pentagon report, China has expanded construction of manmade islands in the South China Sea to a total of nearly 3,000 acres and is taking steps to militarize the islands for power projection capabilities.
Sri Lanka
Narendra Modi was the 1st prime Minister in 28 years to visit Sri Lanka, a country that has huge strategic importance to India. Last time, Manmohan Singh was supposed to visit but he cancelled due to “Coalition compulsion” threats.
During Modi’s visit many agreements were signed from rail network to power but Sri Lanka’s biggest natural harbor, at Trincomalee, was the salient focus of Modi visit and was not covered by media or writers probably due to lack of their ability to understand long term strategy.
Trincomalee is inner harbor bay on east coast and it gives natural protection to harbour and being on the eastern coast it will help Indian ships to refuel with an eye on South China Sea. This is a strategically located port for Indian Navy.
Seychelles
India has traditionally been the main defense provider for Seychelles, providing armaments and training to its People’s Defense Forces (SPDF). India extended a $50 million line of credit and $25 million grant to Seychelles in 2012 in an attempt to cement strategic ties. The Indian Navy has been making regular forays into the island nation’s surrounding waters.
In Seychelles, Modi did hold bilateral discussions with President James Alexis Michel to strengthen maritime ties and enhance bilateral development cooperation.
Four important agreements, inked between Seychelles and India during the Prime Minister visit, were in the field of health, renewal energy, education, defense and maritime security. It must be noted that Modi was second Indian prime minister to visit Seychelles after Indira Gandhi’s visit in 1981.
India gave a patrol ship to Seychelles, a 115-island country located 1,500 km east of Southeast Africa. The patrol ship was for the Seychelles Coast Guard to better patrol its extensive Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The most important point which no media highlighted were the Dornier aircraft for the Seychelles and a Coastal Surveillance Radar Project for maritime security.
Mauritius
In Mauritius, the Indian prime minister was the chief guest at Mauritius’ National Day celebrations. Commissioning a 1,300-ton Indian-built patrol vessel, Barracuda, India’s first ever export warship, the prime minister said those who live in this region have the primary responsibility for peace, stability and prosperity in the region.
It is important to note that during UPA time, Manmohan Singh government opened Mauritius route for financial transaction, which over period of last 10 years had become a major route for dubious companies to move funds and save tax. A good relation with Mauritius will help government to plug the dirty money movement.
Project Mausam
On the back of growing Chinese naval activity in the Indian ocean region, which India considers its area of supremacy, the Modi administration has introduced Project Mausam, which is believed to rival the Chinese Maritime Silk Road (MSR) initiative.
‘Mausam’, in many South and Southeast Asian languages, means weather or season and this project is profound in its role in highlighting the ancient maritime links which was dependent on the monsoonal winds.
The project which is still in the evolving phase, is being with worked with the Cultural Ministry and focuses on the ancient trade and cultural linkages with emphasis on future maritime cooperation in the Indian ocean region stretching from Southeast Asia to East Africa with India at the center. The recent Africa Summit is nothing but part of long term strategy build within Project Mausam to counter China’s control over African nations.
The BOTTOM LINE
It’s unfortunate that the Indian media lacks the perception of foreign policy being played out today.
Imagine a situation of war with either Pakistan or China. China with its dominance in South China Sea and Indian Ocean can cut India’s supply lines in no time. This will dry-up supply of fuel and major imports. Neighbouring nations on the east which depends on supply from India as they have no sea base will also dry-up & will help China to eliminate India’s security buffer zone.
With Seychelles, Mauritius, Sri Lanka & Maldives India can go beyond Chine’s string of pearls and can keep and eye. The Seychelles Coastal Surveillance Radar Project, India is well equipped to keep an eye on Pakistan movement both in sea & air.
Finally, In a common man understand, I see Modi government trying to establish a net to secure India with small Indian Ocean Nations not by dumping good and killing their local growth but via mutual growth.
In my next post, I will write about the west, Pacific and Middle East. If you have any comments or information please share on my twitter handle @drgpradhan with hashtag #MyKulfi