Since first actively deploying vessels to the Indian Ocean in 2008, China has significantly increased its regional activities. Along with securing its interests, Beijing has established itself and its capabilities in the area, anticipating any potential future conflict in the Western Pacific.
China’s presence in the Indian Ocean region (IOR) is often discussed in terms of its sporadic engagements in Africa, the Middle East or South Asia. Examining China’s engagement across the ocean more broadly, from the Red Sea to the western coast of Australia, provides greater insight into China’s interest in the region. Furthermore, it illuminates the role of the Indian Ocean in a potential conflict scenario in the Western Pacific.
A strategic presence China’s involvement in the IOR is long standing and wide ranging, with military, economic and diplomatic engagement across the full expanse of the region. This is important to note as Beijing’s interests and engagements in the Indian Ocean are often treated as an afterthought in discussions of the geopolitics of the Indo-Pacific. The importance of the Indian Ocean for China’s energy transit is well established and understood. Beyond energy security, however, the Indian Ocean is also vital for China’s engagement with Africa, Europe, the Middle East, South Asia and the region’s island states. In addition, an Indian Ocean presence is crucial for Beijing to establish itself as a credible naval power with grand ambitions.
Defending sea lines of communication (SLOCs) China’s presence in the IOR is not new, nor is it a response to any particular regional actor. Rather, it reflects the importance of the ocean to Beijing’s maritime ambitions. Beijing’s investments and activities in the region have gradually but consistently grown since its first anti-piracy deployment to the Indian Ocean in 2008. In 2014, China sent submarines to the Indian Ocean in support of its anti-piracy task force, and in 2017 it opened its first overseas military facility in Djibouti. Today, Beijing is a key trading partner for most states bordering the ocean, with diplomatic missions in every state in the region.
No comments:
Post a Comment