What kind of ‘game’ is this of the Dragon in Sri Lankan waters? Know the meaning of the presence of Indo-China warships

New Delhi : Indian and Chinese warships docked in Sri Lanka at the same time on Monday. Indian Navy’s guided missile destroyer INS Mumbai and Chinese destroyers Hefei and Wuzhishan and Qilianshan have camped together in Sri Lanka. This incident is important because presidential elections are going to be held in Sri Lanka next month. There may be a conflict between the strategic interests of India and China in Sri Lanka.

The history of the Cold War is connected

Major nations have been poking their noses into Sri Lanka since the Cold War era. As a result, the island nation has often been left out strategically. India was never happy with the US securing the location of a US relay station in Sri Lanka. It is believed that the US needed it to keep an eye on the sea lanes of the Indian Ocean. Keeping an eye on the Soviet Navy was the main purpose at that time. This is today described as the Indo-Pacific theatre.

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Sri Lanka emerged as a hub of Navy

Sri Lanka has emerged as a hub for naval visits from several countries. This strategy not only leveraged the geographical location of the island nation but also helped Colombo shift to a multi-alignment posture. From 2009 to 2020, over 525 warships visited Sri Lanka. Of these, 110 were from India, 80 were from Japan and 40 were from China. Thus, Sri Lanka serving as a port-of-call for international navies is not new.

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The Emergence of the Chinese Sea Dragon

China’s emergence as a naval power and its extensive deployment of warships in the Indian Ocean Region has changed the game. China today has the world’s largest navy. It comprises over 360 warships and submarines. India has only 140 warships. In addition, a large Chinese maritime militia has been at the forefront of Beijing’s aggressive strategy in the South China Sea. China’s Communist leaders are not doing this just to feel great. They see China’s geographic perimeter as a seascape with multiple maritime chokepoints. The Strait of Malacca and the Strait of Tsushima are just some of the reasons. Beijing’s strategy is to counter any move by the US and allies to encircle itself and close its trade and supply routes, while also achieving strong maritime dominance.

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Chinese intrusion into SEZs of neighbouring countries

As a result, China is pushing the boundaries of freedom of navigation and maritime sovereignty in large parts of the Indo-Pacific. It is intruding into the exclusive economic zones of maritime neighbours such as the Philippines and Vietnam. China is building and militarising artificial islands and deploying a series of spy ships under the guise of research vessels. Recall the docking of the Chinese ‘research ship’ Yuan Wang 5 in Hambantota, Sri Lanka in 2022. India objected to the ship’s presence in its strategically important area. However, today China has an almost permanent presence in the Indian Ocean region through its research and survey vessels. These map oceanic data useful for naval operations.

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Chinese influence in Sri Lanka

China’s influence in Sri Lanka is deeply rooted. Despite the Argalaya protests in the summer of 2022, Rajapaksa remains a force in Sri Lankan politics. When he/she was in power, he/she and his/her political allies advanced Chinese interests, taking large Chinese loans to fund white elephant projects. Those loans contributed to Colombo’s economic crisis. Although President Ranil Wickremesinghe has steadied Sri Lanka’s economic ship, China’s determination to extend its influence in the Indian Ocean region may again put Sri Lankan politicians in a position where they are unable to resist Chinese money. This could then again facilitate a greater Chinese naval presence in the region.

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How is it a headache for India

All of this is a strategic-security dilemma for India. Its troops are still deployed against the Chinese PLA in the upper reaches of the Himalayas in eastern Ladakh. The southern Chinese threat in addition to the northern China-Pakistan combination is exactly what New Delhi does not want.