India's Look-East Policy - Targets China, says commentator

[Minghegy]

no doubt, USA is (a) south asia country as well :emot15:

 

[roma]

no doubt, USA is (a) south asia country as well :emot15:

the andaman and nicobar group of inslands are right in the heart of the original group of ASEAN countries .

dragons hainan island is further off from indonesia, malaysia, singapore brunei which are the original and core of the ASEAN countries , vietnam and some are later additions .

when the original asean countries are threatened by a usa pullout of troops , whom do they look to ?

so usa is correct to include tiger as part of asean defence system

 

[Ray]

The US will not pull out of Asia since her strategic interest lie here.

Mainly, it maintains a presence to counter the Chinese and protect its Asian allies like Taiwan and Japan and so on.

In this regard, it is worth a dekko of Di-ck Cheney's 'Defence Policy Guidelines'.

 

[Minghegy]

Southeast Asia (ASEAN) neither is a part of South Asia nor East Asia.

 

[amoy]

Fully conscious of India's attempt in colaboration with Uncle China of course isn't a sitting duck. Evidently China is vigourously asserting her presence in S. Asia with economic strength rather than leaving that enormous foreign reserve rot in the US treasury bonds. Geographically China is also a S Asia country

 

[Ray]

China's aggressive intent in the South China Seas and now the spat with Japan, which is no pushover, will not make the Asian countries comfortable.

That will surely dampen Chinese attempts at hegemony since no matter how small a Nation maybe, then will not accept hegemonic tendencies.

 

[EagleOne]

ASEAN invites India, US to keep China in check

The presence of India and the United States at a meeting on the Asia-Pacific region's security architecture, being organised by the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) for the first time next month, is likely to make China uncomfortable. China has long-standing sovereignty disputes over sections of the South China Sea — which contain valuable reserves of oil and natural gas — with four ASEAN members: Vietnam, Philippines, Brunei and Malaysia. It has repeatedly stressed that it wants to resolve its differences without any external interference.

Beijing has been increas ingly belligerent in stressing its claims with these much smaller countries. It may well perceive India and the US's participation in the meet being held in Vietnam — Defence Minister A.K. Antony will travel to Hanoi on October 11 — as the first step towards just the kind of power balancing it wants to avoid.

Apart from Asean members, eight more countries have been invited: the six neighbour countries that are already associated with Asean without being members (India, Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea), along with two newcomers: the US and Russia.

"China will find itself in a spot at the meeting. The US, Russia and India add to the forum's influence. These countries will read the riot act to China for its growing assertiveness," said Air Vice Marshal Kapil Kak (retd), strategic affairs expert.


ASEAN invites India, US to keep China in check - Hindustan Times

 

[SHASH2K2]

Looks like politically China will be in very very precarious situation in Asean meeting. I dont think that there will be any supporter for them. It will be dominated by Anti China nations . Presence of India and America in meeting will definitely enough to keep them worried. China should forget about World Dominance . They have more than enough problems coming in their own backyard. Japan was already a big problem for them and with Japan ready now to fight against Chinese over assertiveness These small countries will find a new Leader to rally behind. Look like China is going to have very very good days ahead.:emot159:

 

[roma]

they have been mullling it for a long time - so qn is when will it really take olace in reality - glad to see though that antony is visiting hanoi .

russia also should be present as the penultimate paragraph suggests.

and they will have to do a lot more than merely read the riot act to prc - cos prc wouldnt be impressed by reading but actual armaments !

they will need to send the missile armed ships in, nothing less !!

 

[lurker]

Looks like China played its hand too early and too fast by rapidly expanding its 'core interests'.

 

[SHASH2K2]

They are trying to eat more than they can chew. Trying to grab everyones food will definitely unite people from whom you are trying to steal. China is having border issue with almost every neighbour and newly found money has made them mad. Very soon shock therapy will start for them as operation theatre is almost ready and doctors are about to come .

 

[EagleOne]

well they cant press all south asian nations for the success of their territorial ambition
they have teritorial problem with almost all ASEAN countries except n.k&pakistan

 

[ejazr]

Wall Street Journal has a more extensive article exploring ASEAN, Japan and South Korea working with US

U.S., Asean Set to Push Back Against China - WSJ.com

 

[Ray]

Confidence of China that SE Asia is China's backyard is backfiring.

As I said before, the US is Machiavellian in approach and one should not write off the US so early!

 

[o'conor]

Thats what over-confidence does. They seems to have everything with worlds second biggest economy, second biggest army, permanent security council seat yet they are far off their dream of unipolar sino-centric Asia. So close still so far. :emot112:

 

[EagleOne]

India gets observer status at ASEAN inter-parliamentary assembly

New Delhi, Sep 24 (IANS) India's application for observer status at the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) was approved Friday at its 31st general assembly held in Hanoi, Vietnam.

'India's flag was ceremoniously placed on the dais whereupon the leader of our delegation G.V. Harsha Kumar, a Lok Sabha MP, made his acceptance speech reaffirming the commitment of the Indian parliament to further deepen and strengthen relations with ASEAN countries and parliaments,' said a release issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat here.

India is the eighth observer to AIPA. The other seven observers are Australia, Canada, European Union, Japan, South Korea, China and Russia.

'In our plenary statement, the Indian delegation said that cooperation between the parliament of India and AIPA added a new dimension to India's Look East Policy and reflected the high priority attached by India to strengthen its relations with ASEAN countries,' the statement said.

The Indian delegation also included R.C. Singh, a Rajya Sabha MP, and J.P. Sharma, joint secretary, Lok Sabha Secretariat.

Members of AIPA are the parliaments of Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei, Philippines, Laos, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia. Myanmar is a special observer at AIPA.

 

[SHASH2K2]

China stands for peaceful settlement of South China Sea disputes - Foreign Ministry


BEIJING, September 25 (RIA Novosti) - China stands for peaceful regulation of disputes concerning the South China Sea, Jiang Yu, official spokeswoman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.
On Thursday Philippines' President Benigno Aquino said the10-member Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) is ready to repel the Chinese pressure.
Beijing claims several potentially resource-rich islands in the South China Sea.
"If China forces its point of view [on ASEAN countries," over the territorial disputes in the South China Sea, ASEAN countries "will make a joint stand against this," Aquino said.
A second ASEAN-U.S.A. summit was held in New York on Friday. Despites Chinese protests, the participants of agreed on the importance of "peaceful resolution of disputes" and "freedom of navigation" in the South China Sea.
The ASEAN has the potential for world leadership, US President Barack Obama said, pressing home his strategy of rebuilding US influence in the dynamic region.
Earlier, Bejing had warned the United States not to get involved in South China Sea dispute.
"China has and always will work for the peaceful resolution of the South China Sea disputes," Jiang said.
She said China hopes the concerned states, including the Philippines, will deal with the relevant disputes through friendly bilateral consultation and negotiation.

 

[SHASH2K2]

China's string of pearls vs India's iron curtain in the indian ocean, it is a C3IC issue
India will have "to cope with the Rise of China" and as the respected journalist and former media adviser to the PM Dr Manmohan Singh who recently returned from China, Sanjaya Baru stated at a prestigious seminar in New Delhi on 16th April, "Indians will have to accept China is miles ahead of India". The only major advantage India has is its strategic geographic locale jutting into the Indian Ocean, new friends in the West,a very intelligent though undisciplined people and a fine expanding Navy which needs nurturing and is the envy of China.

China's 1st October (2009), National Day Parade loaded with military power on display has been commented upon by the Economist as, "The world has accepted that China is emerging as a great power; it is a pity that it still does not always act as one", and goes on to say, " for many Chinese, daily life remains a grim struggle, and their government rapacious, arbitrary and corrupt. Take that spectacular parade. What message was it meant to convey to an awestruck world? China is a huge, newly emerging force on the world scene. And it is unapologetically authoritarian, as were Japan and Prussia, whose rises in the late 19th century were hardly trouble-free."

In recent years, a number of analysts have drawn attention to the similarities of nationalism between the rise of modern China and the rise of Wilhelmine Germany a century ago. Newsweek's Fareed Zakaria, commented that "like Germany in the late 19th century, China is also growing rapidly but uncertainly into a global system in which it feels it deserves more attention and honor. The Chinese military is a powerful political player, as was the Prussian officer corps. Like Wilhelmine Germany, the Chinese regime is trying to hold on to political power even as it unleashes forces in society that make its control increasingly shaky."

This is where India, and Indian Ocean come in. The strategic thinker Mahan had prophesied that the future of the world in the 21st Century would be decided on the waters of the Indian Ocean and India's expansion of its maritime power and Navy and inroads in to the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) is very much on China's radar. A US researcher from Boston Consulting had coined China's investment in ports like Gwadar in Pakistan, Hambantota in Sri Lanka, Sittwe in Mynmar and Chittagong in Bangla Desh as a 'String of Pearls' to encircle India, noting the pearls in the string can be increased, and China made overtures to lease an island in the Seychelles, which India appears to have thwarted.

The recent India- China sparring match on intrusions on the border, issuance of visas on separate paper arbitrarily by the Chinese Embassy to Kashmiris, and India's service chiefs commenting on India's order of battle (ORBAT) vis a vis China seems to be the flavor of the times, and needs to be introspected. The sparring had actually begun earlier, with the Chinese Ambassador's orchestrated claims on Arunachal and Tawang, and China's strong objections in the ADB forum to block India's developmental loan.

In 2006 Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh speaking at the Commander's conference , had made a policy statement when he stated, "India's growing international stature gives it strategic relevance in the area ranging from the Persian Gulf to the Straits of Malacca "¦..India has exploited the fluidities of the emerging world order to forge new links through a combination of diplomatic repositioning, economic resurgence and military firmness". Many dubbed this as India's 'Singh Doctrine', and China took note of this.

In May 2009 at the Shangri 'la Dialogue in Singapore, the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Sureesh Mehta (now Retired) confirmed the role of the Indian Navy in the Indian Ocean in his key note address as, "We see the Indian Navy as a significant stabilising force in the Indian Ocean region, which safeguards traffic bound not only for our own ports, but also the flow of hydrocarbons and strategically important cargo to and from the rest of the world across the strategic waterways close to our shores"¦..And so, the safety of SLOCS will always remain a priority for India in the foreseeable future.".

Chinese researchers have taken up the gauntlet to staunchly defend China's String of Pearls, as small change to developing countries, since it claims India has built its ports with ADB and World bank loans, which these countries find difficult to come by. Chinese naval analyst Zhang Ming recently proclaimed that the Islands of India's Andaman and Nicobar Archipelago could be used as a 'metal chain' to block Chinese access to the Straits of Malacca, and argued that India is building an 'Iron Curtain' in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), and ganging up with USA, Japan and Australia in what is called the Quad. The Japanese used the Andaman and Nicobar islands in the second world war as airfields for launching strikes, and are strategically located.

It is less publicised or talked about, yet the Chinese cite that in the last two decades India has stealthily strengthened its involvement in the IOR which includes the islands of Mauritius, Maldives, Seychelles, Madagascar and Zanzibar and the rim states of South Africa, Tanzania and Mozambique by very deft moves in foreign policy, economic sops like the double taxation exemption with Mauritius, and military inroads. Recently Defence Minister AK Antony visited Maldives and has promised to set up a radar chain for the country. This is the classical strategy of gaining influence by conjoining economic power and perks, with military diplomacy called 'Showing the Flag', so well perfected by larger maritime naval powers in the past. In recent times the Indian Navy has generously transferred offshore naval patrol vessels, provided staff and training and refit facilities and most importantly provided free and subsidised naval hydrographic support to the island nations of the IOR, which steps have left strategic imprints.

The Indian Navy has a very sophisticated hydrographic branch with 8 large well equipped survey ships, many survey craft, a large electronic chart production centre in Dehra Dun and a world class hydrographic school at Goa which trains several foreign naval and civilian personnel annually. Much funding for the Navy's survey vessels has been contributed by the Ministry of Shipping, which allowed easier induction of latest equipment, and a swifter procurement route than the cumbersome MOD's DPP-08. As a silent strategic arm of the nation the Navy's hydrographic branch has made forays in the IOR to undertake over a dozen survey assignments for island nations and recently executed surveys in Oman, and now is set to assist Saudi Arabia, for which an MOU has been signed. These successes have almost blocked out the more expensive western navies that had provided essentially needed hydrographic support to the island nations with large coast lines and EEZ in the past.

The Indian Ocean holds immense significance for India's development in the 21st century and the Chatham House paper states, "India's strategy is deepening not only commercially but due to concerns over its security and hegemony in the region, which are underpinned by India's Maritime Doctrine." The Chinese look at Indian Navy's gathering of 28 IOR Naval Chiefs including France, as a riparian state, under one roof at Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) in February 2008 in New Delhi and Goa for a retreat, as ganging up. The next IONS is being hosted by the UAE in March 2010 and Rear Admiral Ahmed Mohammed Al Sabab Chief of the UAE Navy and a graduate of the Pakistan Naval Acadmey who visited India in 2009, and will take over the Chairmanship. The preparatory meeting was held in Mombasa from 1st October, 2009.

The India Brazil South Africa(IBSA) grouping which was designed for commercial links, provision of energy and other resources from Africa is viewed by China as another grouping. In recent times China has taken the lead in what is seen as its 'Scramble for Africas'for resources, earlier made famous in a book by that title by Thomas Pakenham. India's maritime military strategy and the Navy's Maritime doctrine, both issued by the Indian Navy are clear on the Navy's responsibility for security support in region. The outgoing Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Sureesh Mehta made this amply clear at the Shangri'la dialogue stating, "Concerted efforts at capability enhancement and capacity building of the smaller countries of the region(IOR), through active assistance of larger neighbours, would be crucial to such efforts in the long term".

In this endeavour, India has a special relationship with Mauritius, a fulcrum island state because of its strong Indian diaspora and instituted a favourable taxation treaty that makes it India's largest offshore investor. The Indian Navy set up the Mauritius Coast Guard in the 70s and provided ships and personnel. Mauritius has close security coordination with India, and Chinese and Pakistan activities in the IOR are closely monitored by India's intelligence. The India-China competition to seek influence in the region is set to intensify as China's cheque book diplomacy currently finds favour in small African states and in Sudan and Zimbabwe. Deng's philosophy of ' the colour of the cat does not matter as long as it catches rats', is still relevant.

When the IOR-ARC, the Arrangement for Regional Cooperation was formed Mauritius, Madagascar and Mozambique supported India's move to block Pakistan's membership and later China's access to IBSA, though Pakistan is a full member of IONS. The Indian Navy has also made in roads to gain over flying and berthing rights in Oman which holds a strategic position especially for the fight against piracy off the Gulf of Aden, and from where India can closely monitors the SLOCs of Hormuz and Aden. India has signed to provide piracy patrols to Mozambique and it was also reported India has established a listening post in Madagascar in 2007. Chinese highlight these issues.

India's maritime swath is from Aden, the Straits of Hormuz to the Strait of Malacca as a region of its watch, and Mahan appears to have seen the coming importance of this region which provides 70% of the world's hydro carbons. K Santhanam former Director of the Institute of Defence Studies and Analysis(IDSA) and one of the architects of India's nuclear programme as the Project Director of India's 1998 nuclear blasts, with a back ground in intelligence and nuclear science, has coined the C3I theory for India- China relations and needs heeding. He is convinced India and China will seek cooperation as China has become India's largest trade partner totting up $ 40 bill, and yet will always be in competition for markets and influence, and in the future confrontation cannot be ruled out if both nations' interests clash. This writer feels the world has to be prepared for that contingency as nation's juggle to balance China and India, both growing economic powers, in their overall relations. In this matrix Santhanam avers Intelligence which includes cyber warfare will play a major role to ensure which nation succeeds better to gain influence, hence Santhanam's C3I theory of cooperation, competition and possible confrontation is eye opening for strategic gazers of the scenario. In this matrix the China- Pakistan nexus and the future of Afghanistan where India has interests is also a muddied by military operations against the Taliban and Al Queda.

China also has a 'Malacca Dilemma', and contributes generously to the Tripartite Technical Expert Group (TTEG) of Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore that control the Malacca Straits. India too has contributed $ 1.2 million as a response, and advanced $ 774,000 to TTEG on 31st March, 2009. What has irked the Chinese is the Indian Navy's offer to survey wrecks in the Malacca Straits which has been accepted by the TTEG . India looks at hydrographic assistance as a cooperative measure, while China sees this as strategic move by India by its hydrographic prowess, which has notched up successes.

The Chinese and Indian swords are sheathed for the time being, but could be out and India has to be prepared for the String of Pearls vs the Iron Curtain debate in what Santhnam has coined as C3I, for it was Chi Haotin who had said, "Indian Ocean is not India's Ocean". As the Chinese say never dig a spear in to the Dragon's eye. India will have to cope, and add a C to the C3I. Both nations have internal challenges of rampant poverty, and it is also been said, India is like boiling water. Steam and froth on top but rather calm below. China is like boiling oil, calm above but violent and seething below. If and when an eruption does takes place in any nation, it could be violent. The jury is still not out whether the Chinese top down approach is superior to India's rather slower, democratic and consensual approach.

 

[ajtr]

The Changing Roles of U.S., Australia, China and India in the South Pacific​

Breakfast with The Honorable C. Steven McGann U.S. Ambassador to Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Tonga and Tuvalu

10/05/2010

Asia Society Washington, The Cinnabar Room, Whittemore House
Address: 1526 New Hampshire Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20036
Cost: Asia Society members: $15, Asia Society nonmembers: $20, Non-Members + One year Asia Society Membership: $75
Website: The Changing Roles of U.S., Australia, China and India in the South Pacific | Asia Society


Fiji is expanding its ties with the new Asian superpowers, China and India, says the country's self-appointed Prime Minister, Frank Bainimarama. The Prime Minister says that he is prepared to modify Fiji's traditional ties with Australia, New Zealand, and the United States in exchange for more aid and trade opportunities, particularly from Beijing.

China's emerging role in the South Pacific will have implications for America's Pacific policy, and there are debates whether the US should step up its diplomatic efforts in the South Pacific region.

Ambassador C. Steven McGann will give an overview of the US Pacific policy. He will also discuss US relations with Australia, New Zealand, and other Pacific island countries, as well as key issues such as climate change.

Ambassador McGann is a career Senior Foreign Service officer, rank of Minister- Counselor (FE-MC), recently serving as the Director of the Office for Australian, New Zealand and Pacific Island Affairs in the Bureau for East Asian and Pacific Affairs.

He also was a Senior Adviser in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs serving as the maritime security coordinator and expert on North Korean human rights and refugee issues. He was the South Asia Bureau Deputy Director for Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh (2000-02) and helped craft polices to restore democracy in Afghanistan.

Ambassador McGann's overseas posts have included Taiwan, Zaire, South Africa, Australia, and Kenya.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

How India is undoing China's string of pearls

How India is undoing China's string of pearls: Rediff.com India News

New Delhi's defence establishment has quietly put in place India's own counter-measures to woo and bolster China's neighbours as a long-term strategy, says Nitin Gokhale
One of the least understood and less scrutinised facets of India's diplomacy is perhaps New Delhi's 'Look East' policy, now nearly two decades old.

Launched during Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao's regime primarily to try and integrate India's newly liberalising economy with that of the Asian 'tigers', that policy is now quietly evolving into a more robust military-to-military partnership with important nations in that region.

Over the past three months alone, top Indian military leadership has made important trips to key nations in South-East and East Asia -- Vietnam, South Korea, Japan [ Images ], Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore.

Indian Army [ Images ] chief General V K Singh was in Vietnam in July, furthering an already strong strategic relationship. General Singh's visit was the first in a decade by an Indian army chief.

Apart from meeting his Vietnamese counterpart, Deputy Chief of General Staff Pham Hong Loi, the Indian army chief discussed with Vietnam's National Defence Minister Phung Quang Thanh, the road map to implement the 2009 memorandum of understanding between the two ministries of defence.

Two areas where India and Vietnam will focus their immediate attention were training of military personnel and dialogue between experts on strategic affairs on both sides.

General Singh's visit will be followed by Defence Minister A K Antony's mid-October trip to Hanoi when he will participate in the first-ever regional meeting of political leaders in the defence field.

As the current chair of ASEAN, Vietnam has invited India to the ASEAN+8 defence ministers meeting. The 10-member ASEAN will be joined by Australia [ Images ], China, India, Japan, New Zealand [ Images ], Russia [ Images ], South Korea, and the United States at that important conclave.

Although Indo-Vietnam political and diplomatic ties can be traced back to Jawaharlal Nehru's [ Images ] time, it was only in the post 1990s that the two nations decided to build and strengthen military-to-military relationship.

This development was a result of two main reasons -- one historical, the other contemporary.

To begin with, both India and Vietnam had borne the brunt of Chinese aggression -- India in 1962 and Vietnam in 1979.

And two, the collapse of the Soviet Union, for long a security guarantor for both India and Vietnam in Asia, left New Delhi and Hanoi without an all-weather, all-powerful friend.

Both India and Vietnam, who have long-pending territorial disputes with China thus decided to unite against their common adversary. Located on the edges of South-East Asia, Vietnam is ideally placed to prevent China's expansion into the South China Sea.

So, for over a decade now, India has been providing Vietnam with assistance in beefing up its naval and air capabilities in an attempt to deny China total supremacy in the South China Sea.

Both New Delhi and Hanoi traditionally sourced majority of their military hardware from the erstwhile Soviet Union. That commonality has meant that both can share expertise and resources available with their respective armed forces in terms of handling and maintaining the Soviet-era weaponry.

India, for instance, has repaired and upgraded over 100 MiG 21 planes of the Vietnamese Air Force and supplied them with enhanced avionics and radar systems. Indian Air Force pilots have also been training their Vietnamese counterparts.

The Indian Navy, by far larger than the Vietnamese navy, has been supplying critical spares to Hanoi for its Russian origin ships and missile boats.

After Antony's 2007 visit to Vietnam, the Indian and Vietnamese coast guards have engaged in joint patrols, and both navies participated in a joint exercise in 2007.

But Vietnam is not the only nation India is inching closer to in China's immediate neighbourhood.

Antony, who is fast emerging as a quiet but effective player in India's military diplomacy, in early September became the first Indian defence minister ever to visit South Korea, a pro-US, anti-China nation in the vicinity.

He led a top-notch team of military and civil officials like Defence Secretary Pradeep Kumar, Vice-Admiral RK Dhowan, Lieutenant General K T Parnaik, DRDA Chief Controller C K Prahlada, and Sundaram Krishna, special adviser to the defence minister.

The visit was a follow-up on the declaration issued by both countries during President Lee Myung-bak's state visit to New Delhi in January, when it was decided to elevate bilateral relationship to a 'strategic partnership'.

Although nowhere near the level of Indo-Vietnam defence cooperation, the newly evolving India-South Korea partnership is being seen as a vital component of India's game plan to counter China's increasing footprint in the subcontinent.

Seoul is a perfect counter balance to the China-North Korea-Myanmar-Pakistan axis that New Delhi and US regard as a major irritant in the Asia-Pacific region.

Moving eastward, India is actively pursuing deeper defence cooperation with Japan. Last week, for the first time, India is expanding its defence ties with Japan, a newfound strategic partner in the region.

Air Chief Marshal P V Naik, chairman of India's Chiefs of Staff Committee, the senior-most Indian military officer, led an Indian delegation to Japan on September 28 to participate in the first military-to-military talks between the two countries.

Naik's visit comes just weeks ahead of a trip by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh [ Images ] to Tokyo in late October.

Naik's visit is a follow-up to Antony's discussions in Japan last year, when the two countries expressed their commitment to contribute to bilateral and regional cooperation, which in other words is an effort to build regional partnerships to counter the growing influence of China.

High level visits apart, the Indian Navy has been quite active in its friendly forays into the Pacific. A flotilla of Indian warships is about to complete a month-long deployment to the Pacific that included visits to Australia, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam.

So while Indian strategic thinkers have been busy sounding frequent alarms over China's increasing forays into the Indian Ocean and have often overstated the fears of Beijing's [ Images ] 'String of Pearls' around India, New Delhi's defence establishment has quietly put in place India's own counter measures to woo and bolster China's neighbours as a long-term strategy.

Whatever the consequences of this strategy and counter-strategy, one thing is sure: The Indian Ocean and its periphery are poised to become the new playground for the 21st century version of the Great Game in the years to come.