BEYOND VIKRANT

While India is about to commission its second naval carrier, INS Vikrant, the Indian Navy needs a large number of naval shipborne unmanned aerial systems and military facilities in friendly countries to deal with China in the Indo-Pacific, argues GIRISH LINGANNA

- GIRISH LINGANNA

The Indian Ocean Region (IOR), the vital component of the Indo-Pacific, has become a geopolitical hotspot due to increased competition between China and India, alongside the involvement of Western powers bent on trying to counter Beijing’s rising influence in the region. Stakes- both economic and political, are high, and the Indian Navy (IN) needs to be prepared to defend them.

China in the IOR

The Indian Navy has had to lay extensive emphasis on monitoring the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) due to the ever-increasing frequency of Chinese activities, especially the regular spying in the environs of Indian shores (especially the Andaman and Nicobar Islands). China has been accused of using predatory loan practices and opaque contracts alongside corrupt deals that trap nations in debt, all so that it can advance its own strategic interests and obtain access to critical ports in the region. Chinese companies gaining access to Sri Lanka’s port in Hambantota in a 99-year lease following the nation’s inability to pay off a nearly $1.1 billion debt to China is a prime example of the same.