When there is a huge clash going on between India and China, India and Japan send a message to China by conducting a drill in the Indian Ocean
The Indo-China clash is no secret to the world. The ongoing tension between India and China along the Line of Actual Control in Galwan Valley has been extending every day. On June 15th Chinese PLA troops martyred 20 Indian soldiers even after the process of de-escalation began. This violent face-off was not taken well by the Indian citizens.
With regard to this Indian and Japan navies have sent a not so subtle message to China, by conducting a drill with the warships of the 2 nations in the Indian Ocean.
2 warships from each country were part of this drill in the Indian Ocean on Saturday. The 2 warships from Indian Navy were INS Rana and INS Kulish. The two warships from Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force were JS Kashima and JS Shimayuki. This drill was exercised because of China’s military assertiveness not just along its dispute on the border with India but also the disputed boundary with South China Sea and East China Sea.
JMSDF tweeted about the exercise conducted between them and Indian Navy saying it was to promote mutual understanding with the country through this exercise.
The JMSDF also participated in a drill a few days earlier with the United States Navy to promote the mutual understanding between them. This was because of the hackles in Beijing.
This exercise between India and Japan is significantly important because of the ongoing tension against China overBeijing’s expansionist policies that have affected both India and Japan. Massive Protests were held in Tokyo on Sunday by Human Rights Activist demanding that Chinese president Xi Jinping be replaced by a democratic leader.
Japan is also furious with China over these expansionist policies and United States Secretary Mike Pompeo had also recently expressed concerns over China’s expansionist policies.
Just like India has been battling with China over the Line of Action Control border in Easter Ladakh, Japan has been having similar disputes. It is not secret that China has been trying to build a bridge all over the world with its power. Countries like Srilanka, Nepal and a few African Countries have already been affected by China’s border issues. Japan is also having similar issues with China regarding the South China Sea and the Senkaku islands on which China is exerting its claims. India has been advocating for freedom of navigation in the South China Sea and on the other hand China has been asserting that the Indian Ocean does not belong to India and thus has undertaken several expeditions in the area that are critical for global navigation.
India and Japan stepped up their maritime security cooperation over the past few years with bilateral exercises and also multilateral exercises with the United States. The three nations joined Australia in November 2017 to re-launch the Quad which is a four nation initiative. The purpose of the Quad is to primarily build a bulwark against China’s hegemonic aspirations in Indo-Pacific.
On Thursday, Taro Kono who is the Defence Minister of Japan accused China of trying to change the status quo unilaterally in East and South China Seas as well as along its disputed boundary with India.
By Deepika Agarwal
