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International » South Asia

Updated: December 1, 2014 12:37 IST

Indian Ocean has to remain a zone of peace: Ajit Doval

Meera Srinivasan
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval
PTI
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval
If the Indian Ocean has to contribute to the prosperity of different nations, it is necessary that it remains a zone of peace, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval said on Monday.
He was delivering the keynote address at the ‘Galle Dialogue’, held in Sri Lanka's southern coastal town of Galle. Evoking a 1971 UNGA resolution, on the Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace, Mr. Doval said it was important to revisit the resolution mooted by Sri Lanka then “calling upon great powers not to allow escalation and expansion of military presence in the Indian Ocean.”
Mr. Doval’s remarks come at a time when India has been voicing serious concern over China’s growing military presence in the island. In October, Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa was in New Delhi for a meeting with Mr. Doval and Defence Minister Arun Jaitley where New Delhi raised the issue of a Chinese submarine calling at the port in Colombo.
In his address on Monday, Mr. Doval said India has been a status quoist power in the region for 5,000 years, but it had no aggressive design or strategic reason for dominance that is detrimental to any other country.
He called for cooperation between countries to tackle challenges such as piracy, drug smuggling and human trafficking. India would enhance trilateral cooperation with Sri Lanka and the Maldives, he said, stressing the need for maritime security for prosperity. Over 100 representatives from 36 countries participated in the event with the theme Cooperation & Collaboration for Maritime Prosperity’, organised by Sri Lanka's Ministry of Defence and Urban Development.


Opinion » Lead

Updated: December 16, 2014 01:11 IST

New wars on the Cold War relic

T. P. Sreenivasan

Revisiting the Indian Ocean zone of peace concept, which has led to long debates since 1971, may prove hazardous in the present context, because the rivalry that is taking shape in the region is between the U.S. and its allies, and China.

The National Security Adviser, Ajit Doval, has sought to revisit the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 2832 (XXVI) declaring the Indian Ocean as a zone of peace, and which has called upon the great powers not to allow an escalation and an expansion of military presence in the Indian Ocean. (The Hindu, December 1, 2014). The expectation is that it can be used as a device to prevent China from holding sway in the Indian Ocean.
While the Indian Ocean Zone of Peace (IOZOP), in its original form, appears relevant in the present context, the innumerable problems India has faced on account of the resolution and the U.N. Adhoc Committee on the Indian Ocean must be recalled before we take any formal initiative in this regard. Sri Lanka, our comrade in arms in the IOZOP initiative, has played games with us even in the happier days of India-Sri Lanka relations and when China was not in the picture. The new narrative in the Indo-Pacific may not be congenial to depending on Sri Lanka or any other neighbour to deliver on the IOZOP in accordance with our interests.
The formulation

The idea of IOZOP goes back to the days of the 1964 Cairo Conference of the Non-Aligned Movement, which had expressed concern over the efforts of the imperialists to establish bases in the Indian Ocean and declared that the Indian Ocean should not be a battleground for the big powers. The Lusaka Declaration (1970) refined the idea further and it led to the UNGA resolution, which proposed the IOZOP strictly in the context of the raging Cold War at that time.
The UNGA resolution said: “the Indian Ocean, within limits to be determined, together with the air space above and the ocean floor adjacent thereto, is hereby designated for all times as a zone of peace”. It went on to define the zone of peace not as one where there was an absence of war or of a state of peace and tranquillity, but specifically about the great powers halting and eliminating all bases, military installations and logistical facilities, and the disposition of nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction. It also envisaged universal collective security in the region without military alliances. Ships would have the right to unimpeded use of the zone, except warships posing a threat to the littoral and hinterland states of the region.
In subsequent years, in the Adhoc Committee on the Indian Ocean, which was set up under the aegis of the U.N. disarmament machinery, the concept divided rather than united permanent members and the littoral and hinterland states. The permanent members, except China, did not support the original resolution. France, the United States and the United Kingdom kept out of the committee as they felt that they had been directly targeted and the Soviet Union had participated in the work of the committee, paying lip service to the notion of a zone of peace. Australia was the spokesperson of the West, which raised questions on the feasibility of the elimination of foreign military presence.
Regional interpretations

Till the end of the Cold War, India stuck to the purist interpretation of the zone as an area free of foreign military presence, particularly bases and other facilities, conceived in the context of great power rivalry. Implicitly, India did not object to the movement of warships, as long as they did not threaten the regional states. Indira Gandhi reiterated this position at a press conference in Moscow, making the Soviet presence legitimate, even though there were reports that the Soviet Union was seeking to establish bases in Somalia and elsewhere.
The innumerable problems India has faced on account of the U.N. resolution and the U.N. Adhoc Committee on the Indian Ocean must be recalled before we take any formal initiative in this regard.
After a meeting of the littoral and hinterland states in 1979, India became acutely aware of a hidden agenda on the part of Sri Lanka and others to draw attention to the increasing strength of India, posing a threat to the smaller states in the region. Sri Lanka was not loath to have an American presence in the Indian Ocean as a stabilising factor. President Jayewardene said at one point that he did not know whether Sri Lanka wanted the Americans to get out of the Indian Ocean and even hinted that the interests of regional countries differed.
Pakistan began to emphasise “denuclearization” of the Indian Ocean after the Indian tests of 1974 and took the initiative of a Nuclear Weapon Free Zone in South Asia, which was strongly opposed by India. The polarisation was palpable in the Adhoc Committee. Consequently, the possibility of a Colombo Conference to implement the Declaration became remote. India did not find it helpful to hold the Colombo conference without the participation of the great powers. Nor did India participate fully in the Indian Ocean Marine Affairs Cooperation (IOMAC) on the plea that it detracted from the concept of the zone of peace by inviting the great powers to it.
A fallout of the debate in the Indian Ocean Committee was that India and Australia had become antagonistic to each other. Australia began complaining about the growth of the Indian Navy and also countered India at disarmament forums, particularly at the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) negotiations. At one point, K. Subrahmanyam maintained that the confrontation in the Indian Ocean should be treated as being triangular rather than bipolar as he felt that the military presence of the super powers was directed against the autonomy of the Non-Aligned countries.
China had taken a position of tactical support to the zone, as its presence in the Indian Ocean was not in focus. As a proclaimed supporter of the developing countries, China expressed solidarity for the littoral and hinterland states in seeking to eliminate foreign military presence. The focus on the Indian capabilities, which emerged in this context, was also a welcome development for China. It claimed legitimacy for itself as a permanent member of the Security Council and as an Asian power.
Shift in focus

After the end of the Cold War, the dynamics in the Committee underwent a sea change, with India itself shifting the focus of the zone of peace from the elimination of foreign military presence to one of cooperation between the major powers and the littoral and hinterland states. The debate became increasingly an embarrassed ritualisation of the demilitarisation effort. India’s joint exercises in the Ocean with multiple partners legitimised the presence of various navies including that of the U.S.
The Adhoc Committee soldiered on without a particular focus, merely recalling the old resolution and emphasising the need for the permanent members and major maritime users to join in an effort to bring about a balance in the Indian Ocean. From an arena of the Cold War, the Committee became ritualistic without a clear focus or agenda. Naturally, new threats, such as piracy, terrorism, drug trafficking, etc were brought in, making it a forum to combat non-state actors rather than the great powers.
Revisiting the zone of peace concept, which has led to the long debates since 1971 may prove hazardous in the present context, because the rivalry that is taking shape in the region is between the U.S. and its allies, and China. With the kind of support China demonstrated in Kathmandu among the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries, it is possible that the zone of peace idea will turn into a move to counter the U.S. as a foreign presence and to seek some balance between India and China in the Indian Ocean. China might well gain a status similar to India and strengthen its capabilities there. International focus on India’s naval acquisitions, present and future, may well become counterproductive. According to Admiral Arun Prakash, there are not many navies, worldwide, which have seen, in recent years, or are likely to see such significant accretions to their order-of-battle. “This force build-up, once complete, will not only enhance the Navy’s combat capability by an order of magnitude, but would also alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific region.”
A way out

The greatest resistance to the revival of the IOZOP will come from those who will argue that the idea itself is outdated as the Cold War and great power rivalry are non-existent. They are likely to remind us that we ourselves had stressed the Cold War angle more than anything else. Others will begin highlighting the spirit of cooperation that has dawned in the Indian Ocean and lamenting that India is reviving old ghosts. The U.S. may also look at the concept negatively as it will impinge on its own activities. China will marshal support to campaign against the concept of the zone, from which they are sought to be excluded. In other words, a new IOZOP will have even less chance of success than the old one.
A strategy of enhancing cooperation between the littoral and hinterland states and external powers without the reference to the IOZOP may have a greater chance of success. India has special strengths in combating piracy, alleviating natural disasters and trafficking. The involvement of the U.S. in fighting terrorism may be of an advantage. China has already taken note of India’s inclinations in the Asia-Pacific and offered cooperation to avoid the “Asia Pivot” and to adopt an alternative Chinese vision. An opportunity exists for us to develop a third plan of engagement between the regional countries and external forces for fruitful cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.
(T.P. Sreenivasan was India’s representative to the U.N. Adhoc Committee on the Indian Ocean from 1980 to 1983 and from 1992 to 1995.)


International » World

Updated: March 23, 2014 08:50 IST

In Indian Ocean waters, India, China show maritime prowess

Ananth Krishnan
Comment (3)   ·   print   ·   T  T  
Earlier this week, China requested India for permission to deploy four naval vessels in the waters of the Andaman Sea, as the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 widened across the waters of the Indian Ocean.
India turned down the Chinese offer to search its own backyard, and replied to the formal request by detailing its extensive search efforts under way in the Indian Ocean, including the deployment of four naval warships and the new P-8I aircraft, all demonstrating the capabilities of the Indian Navy.
The search for MH370 is undoubtedly an entirely humanitarian exercise, and one that has become unprecedented both in scale and in terms of international cooperation - a dozen countries, including several embroiled in maritime disputes over the South China Sea, have put aside their spats as they have willingly followed Malaysia's lead in the search for the Boeing.
At the same time, the search has also served to demonstrate the new capabilities of the navies of Asia - navies that have been fast modernising at a time of record increases in military spending across the region.
China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has in recent days rapidly deployed eight vessels to scour the South China Sea. On Friday, warships were sent to search the southern Indian Ocean, where four Indian naval warships are also deployed in the search for debris.
Experts in India and China said this week the search has underlined an often ignored aspect of India-China relations.
While the long-running boundary dispute across the Himalayas has remained at the focus of attention for most observers, the fast-expanding engagement - and encounters - between their navies as they spread their presence across the Indian and Pacific Oceans has sometimes been ignored, said Lou Chunhao, a strategic affairs expert at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations in Beijing.
"Now, China under [President] Xi Jinping is paying more attention to 'going west', and as India 'looks east', there will be more interaction [in the Indian and Pacific oceans]," he said.
Mr. Lou was speaking at a rare event in Beijing highlighting India-China relations in the maritime domain. The event was being held to mark the launch of what is possibly the first ever Chinese translation of an Indian book on foreign policy, according to the Chinese publishers, authored by foreign affairs expert C. Raja Mohan on the growing India-China maritime rivalry.
"China's dependence on the Indian Ocean region is continuing to grow, for energy imports from the Gulf, resources from Africa, and trade with Europe," Mr. Raja Mohan said.
Since December 2008, China has been involved in Gulf of Aden anti-piracy operations. Earlier this year, the PLAN held its first-ever major exercise in the Lombok Strait in the southern Indian Ocean.
This year, President Xi Jinping also launched a new "maritime silk road" initiative aimed at boosting trade links and maritime engagement with littoral countries in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
With China's maritime presence in the Indian Ocean set to expand along with its economic interests, the question for India - and its strategic community - was how to engagement with this new reality.
"You cannot build a great wall against Chinese maritime presence," Mr. Raja Mohan said.
In India, most commentaries still highlight China's so-called "string of pearls", referring to port projects China is involved in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Bangladesh that some analysts suggest may later become military bases, although there is, as yet, no evidence to suggest so.
China has maintained these are purely commercial. "Chinese ships going to the Indian Ocean region and the only purpose is for security of energy supplies," said Ma Jiali, a senior South Asia scholar at the China Reform Forum. About the Hambantota project in Sri Lanka, he said it was to be remembered that the project was first offered to India, which turned it down.
Mr. Raja Mohan said Indian and Chinese strategic communities were "talking past each other for most of the time". He hoped the translation of his book would "begin a process of getting Chinese books translated into English, and Indian books into Chinese, and getting strategic communities to understand each other a lot better".
His book has been translated by the official China Publisher Group. Xiao Qiming, who heads the China Democracy and Legal System Publishing House, which is a subsidiary, said the idea was to begin direct interaction between both countries on strategic issues, rather than, as was the case at present, rely on third-party works from western sources.
"By publishing in China, this will given an opportunity for us to understand political and diplomatic ideas of India, and we hope this will add value to taking forward maritime cooperation between the two countries," he said. 



While I see no reason for the Chinese Navy to ‘audit’ the Indian
Navy’s search, I don’t understand what is so secret about the waters
around the Andaman Islands that the Indian Navy seems to be so
sensitive about. Time and time again the armed forces have come in the
way of harnessing the commercial potential of the strategically placed
islands. Learn from next-door Singapore, a tiny island country, which
has used its location to develop into a regional economic powerhouse.
And, ironically, that fact ensures its safety.
Btw, it was rather sad to know that Indian radars in these ‘sensitive’
islands were found sleeping when the missing plane could have been
passing by. Good surveillance job indeed!!

from:  S salim
Posted on: Mar 23, 2014 at 15:10 IST

China never leaves any opportunity to show its growth let it be in Industrial sector or defence. The recent example of China's initiative for search operation in the MH370 is one more in the basket. India on the other hand specially at International arena lacks the leadership skill. Even She has failed at regioal level e.g. SAARC and BIMSTEC are struggeling for its survival.

from:  ashwin
Posted on: Mar 23, 2014 at 09:36 IST

With its past aggression on territorial expansion, China seems to be doing more harm to its economic interests especially with India. Countries all over the world are now realising China's true style of international diplomacy – one that is ruthlessly opportunistic and selfish and misdirected by egotistic approach of their leaders.

from:  Hari
Posted on: Mar 23, 2014 at 07:15 IST

Copyright© 2014, The Hindu 

 

The Indian Ocean Region
Declaration of the Indian Ocean  as a Zone of Peace
UN General Assembly Resolution 2832 (XXVI) 
16 December 1971
The item "Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace" was included in the agenda of the 26th General Assembly in 1971 at the initiative of Sri Lanka and, subsequently, the United Republic of Tanzania. It led to the adoption of Resolution 2832 (XXVI), by which the Indian Ocean, within limits to be determined, together with the airspace above and the ocean floor subjacent thereto, was designated for all times as a zone of peace. In 1972, the General Assembly established the Ad Hoc Committee on the Indian Ocean, to study practical measures to achieve the objectives of the Declaration.  At the Ad Hoc Committee on Indian Ocean, 451st Meeting (PM) on 26 July 2005 the representative of China "called for common efforts for countries inside and outside the region to maintain peace and stability in the region and to establish the Zone of Peace at an early date.  To that end, the major Powers outside the region should eliminate their military presence in the Indian Ocean region." 

Text of Declaration
The General Assembly,
Conscious of the determination of the peoples of the littoral and hinterland States of the Indian Ocean to preserve their independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, and to resolve their political, economic and social problems under conditions of peace and tranquillity,
Recalling the Declaration of the Third Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries, held at Lusaka from 8 to 10 September 1970, calling upon all States to consider and respect the Indian Ocean as a zone of peace from which great Power rivalries and competition as well as bases conceived in the context of such rivalries and competition should be excluded, and declaring that the area should also be free of nuclear weapons,
Convinced of the desirability of ensuring the maintenance of such conditions in the Indian Ocean area by means other than military alliances, as such alliances
entail financial and other obligations that call for the diversion of the limited resources of the States of the area from the more compelling and productive task of economic and social reconstruction and could further involve them in the rivalries of power blocs in a manner prejudicial to their independence and freedom of action, thereby increasing international tensions,
Concerned at recent developments that portend the extension of the arms race into the Indian Ocean area, thereby posing a serious threat to the maintenance of such conditions in the area,
Convinced that the establishment of a zone of peace in the Indian Ocean would contribute towards arresting such developments, relaxing international tensions and strengthening international peace and security,
Convinced further that the establishment of a zone of peace in an extensive geographical area in one region could have a beneficial influence on the establishment of permanent universal peace based on equal rights and justice for all, in accordance with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,
1. Solemnly declares that the Indian Ocean, within limits to be determined, together with the air space above and the ocean floor subjacent thereto, is hereby designated for all time as a zone of peace;
2. Calls upon the great Powers, in conformity with this Declaration, to enter into immediate consultations with the littoral States of the Indian Ocean with a view to:
(a) Halting the further escalation and expansion of their military presence in the Indian Ocean;
(b) Eliminating from the Indian Ocean all bases, military installations and logistical supply facilities, the disposition of nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction and any manifestation of great Power military presence in the Indian Ocean conceived in the context of great Power rivalry;
3. Calls upon the littoral and hinterland States of the Indian Ocean, the permanent members of the Security Council and other major maritime users of the Indian Ocean, in pursuit of the objective of establishing a system of universal collective security without military alliances and strengthening international security through regional and other co-operation, to enter into consultations with a view to the implementation of this Declaration and such action as may be necessary to ensure that:
(a) Warships and military aircraft may not use the Indian Ocean for any threat or use of force against the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of any littoral or hinterland State of the Indian Ocean in contravention of the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations;
(b) Subject to the foregoing and to the norms and principles of international law, the right to free and unimpeded use of the zone by the vessels of all nations is unaffected;
(c) Appropriate arrangements are made to give effect to any international agreement that may ultimately be reached for the maintenance of the Indian Ocean as a zone of peace;
4. Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its twenty-seventh session on the progress that has been made with regard to the implementation of this Declaration;
5. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its twenty-seventh session an item entitled "Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a zone of peace".

Ad hoc committee on Indian ocean adopts report to General Assembly, 26 July 2005
Ad Hoc Committee on Indian Ocean, 451st Meeting (PM)

Over the years, the Ad Hoc Committee on the Indian Ocean had not been able to reach agreement on the manner of implementation of the 1971 Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace, but the validity of the objectives and the vision of the Declaration remained unchanged, its Chairman Prasad Kariyawasam (Sri Lanka) told the Committee today.

The General Assembly declared the Indian Ocean a zone of peace by resolution 2832 (1971).  It called upon the great Powers to enter into immediate consultations with the littoral States of the Indian Ocean with a view to halting the further escalation and expansion of their military presence in the Indian Ocean.  The Declaration upheld the need to preserve the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the States of the Indian Ocean region and sought to resolve political, economic and social issues affecting the region under conditions of peace and security.

Speaking as the Committee met to adopt its report to the Assembly, Mr. Kariyawasam said that, since the adoption of the Declaration, the situation in the world, particularly in the Indian Ocean, had undergone a major transformation, including the end of super-Power rivalry which had prevailed in the context of the cold war.  Today, there were a number of cooperative initiatives aimed at bringing about socio-economic development, such as the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).  However, new threats, such as terrorism, were now affecting the regional stability and security.  Also, disarmament and arms control efforts in the region had lagged behind.  It was, therefore, clear that there was still ample room to develop measures to realize in general objectives of the Declaration.

The Ad Hoc Committee was the only United Nations body that had the capacity to address security issues in a broader sense involving all interrelated aspects, he continued.  A possibility now existed of exploring a new approach to the scope of the Committee’s work and it might even become necessary to consider revision of the Declaration.  There was a wide range of proposals, including that the Ad Hoc Committee should function as a forum for littoral and hinterland States, the permanent members of the Security Council and major maritime users to discuss their security interests.  Regrettably, three permanent members, namely, France, United Kingdom and the United States, had not yet changed their position on non-participation.

He said, following consultation with Committee members, there appeared to be a general sense that further time would be needed before the Committee could embark on any discussion on practical measures to ensure peace and stability in the Indian Ocean.  The Committee might, therefore, recommend that the General Assembly should allow further time for consultations on how measures in the Declaration could be considered in a more focused manner.

The representative of Indonesia said there was a need to develop a concrete and practical framework for regional cooperation and to establish a formal and pragmatic partnership.  The tsunami tragedy had underlined the imperative necessity for such a partnership.  The Asian-African Summit Meeting held in Jakarta in April had adopted a Declaration on Asian-African Partnership.  That partnership would create a region at peace with itself and the world at large.  The partnership was committed to strive for greater multilateralism and would promote a culture of peace and tolerance among religions and cultures.  It would also promote cooperation in such areas as trade, industry, finance, energy, health, tourism, agriculture and water resources.  Effective cooperation would require, among other things, capacity-building, technical assistance and joint efforts to mitigate natural disasters.
The representative of China called for common efforts for countries inside and outside the region to maintain peace and stability in the region and to establish the Zone of Peace at an early date.  To that end, the major Powers outside the region should eliminate their military presence in the Indian Ocean region.  All parties should observe principles such as non-aggression, equality and peaceful coexistence.  States in the region should not seek any armament in excess of their legitimate national defence needs and avoid accumulation of weapons of mass destruction.
The representative of Australia said that, regrettably, the Committee had yet to find a productive direction for its work.  The opportunity for substantive work in the Committee remained poor.  Time and resources devoted to the Committee should remain limited, until such a time that a work programme was agreed upon and substantive work could begin.

The Ad Hoc Committee adopted its agenda (document A/AC.159/L.135) and the draft report to the General Assembly (document A/AC.159/L.136), which was introduced by its Rapporteur, Modeste Randrianarivony (Madagascar).  The report recommended to the Assembly that the Chairman be requested to continue informal consultations with the members of the Committee and to report through the Committee to the Assembly at its sixty-second session.

In other action, the Ad Hoc Committee elected Mr. Kariyawasam (Sri Lanka) as its Chairman, and Ben Milton (Australia) and Adam Tugio (Indonesia) as vice-chairs.  Filipe Chidumo (Mozambique) was re-elected as a vice-chair.

Current members of the Ad Hoc Committee are:  Australia, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Poland, Romania, Russian Federation, Seychelles, Singapore, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Thailand, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Republic of Tanzania, Yemen, Zambia and Zimbabwe.  Nepal, South Africa and Sweden are observers.

The Ad Hoc Committee will meet again at a time to be announced.



U.N. GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION ON INDIAN OCEAN AS ZONE OF PEACE

International Legal Materials
Vol. 11, No. 1 (JANUARY 1972), pp. 217-219
Published by: American Society of International Law
Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20690864

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