Punching above weight

Island states are trying to shape maritime power in the Indian Ocean

- MOHAMMAD ASIF KHAN

Vice Admiral Tarun Sobti (right), Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff, Indian Navy, with Major General Ibrahim Hilmy, Chief of Defence Force, Maldives, during an official visit to the Male in December 2023

(PHOTO: INDIAN NAVY)

In August 1810, at the height of the ‘Anglo-Napoleonic wars, a small French fleet based in Mauritius did something unexpected: It defeated the mighty British Royal Navy.

The British force was larger and better armed. But French Commodore Jacques Hamelin and Captain Guy-Victor Duperré knew the waters.

Using reefs, narrow channels, and local knowledge, they slipped past Captain Samuel Pym’s squadron and forced a rare defeat on what was then the world’s most powerful navy.

The battle showed something that still matters in the Indian Ocean: Control is not only about ships and firepower. It is about access, geography, and who understands the sea the best.

That lesson has not aged: More than two centuries later, India and China compete for influence in the Indian Ocean region, a place which has traditionally been seen as an area of Indian influence. In this setting, Mauritius, Seychelles and the Maldives carry weight that far exceeds their size.

India shifted from a passive role to a muscular one in the 1980s, spurred by its Operation Cactus to thwart a coup attempt against President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom in the Maldives in 1988. It has engaged similarly in Seychelles and Mauritius over the years to enforce its role as the “net security provider” in the region.

However, that has changed in recent years. Long subservient to the big powers, these island states are now asserting themselves over port access, defence cooperation and overall maritime dominance in the Indian Ocean region.

Small is big