Naval pursuits

China and Pakistan's navies have a lot in common, especially after the completion of Gwadar Port in Balochistan

It’s the warm season on the high seas. The naval exercises in the Arabian Sea conducted by China and Pakistan came close on the heels of similar debut drills between Russia and Myanmar in the Indian Ocean. Both these pairs of drills had one thing in common: to contest the surging US influence in the region. Beijing and Islamabad turned a new leaf as joint maritime patrols were held for the first time. On a broader canvas, these naval collaborations were a tactical message to India which long desired hegemony on land and sea in the region, and was seen rubbing shoulders with extra-territorial forces.

China and Pakistani navies have a lot in common, especially after the completion of Gwadar Port in Balochistan, which will link Central Asia, Afghanistan and Iran to the warm waters up to the Strait of Hormuz. The Russia-Myanmar naval exercise held from November 7 to 9 in the Andaman Sea on the northeastern fringe of the Indian Ocean is a milestone for Moscow’s naval presence in a sea that the US counts as one of its global security interests. Likewise, Moscow by partnering with Yangon, has directly posed riddles to Washington that wants to colonise the South China Sea and control its navigation for obvious reasons of blocking Chinese rise as an uncontested naval power. This has prompted India and the US to renew their security cooperation in the region, and the recently concluded high-powered ‘2+2’ ministerial dialogue in New Delhi is a case in point.

It remains to be seen whether this surfing of waters by the allies, in both the respective zone, with big guns and submarines remains mere muscle flexing for professional upgradation of seamen, or translates into a rivalry of sorts. India, Australia, Japan, Taiwan and India have their own axe to grind, and with Washington sitting in cahoots, a deep sense of commitment for peace and open sea navigation for all is a must. Any attempt to monopolise the sea beyond territorial waters must be contested as per international law.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, November 14^th, 2023.

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