Amaterasu

India, Japan, US Plan Military Cooperation While China Watches Nervously


VOA
Marzo 9, 2007, 15:01 EST

New Delhi, India --
Indian and Japanese officials on Friday confirmed that the two nations will join the U.S. Navy in a first of its kind, large-scale maritime exercise next month.

The naval drill, scheduled for mid-April near the U.S. naval base at Yokosuka, Japan, has yet to be formally announced by any of the three governments.

But Japanese diplomats, Indian officials and American academics at a symposium in New Delhi Friday hailed the planned naval exercise as the start of a new era for Japan and India.

It coincides with increased concern about China's military build-up.

Ashley Tellis, a senior associate of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, says the main purpose of the exercise is to enhance training in anti-piracy, detection of smuggling, and the coordination of disaster responses and rescue operations. Indian officials say the same.

Tellis tells VOA that Beijing should not misinterpret the exercise. The former U.S. National Security Council staff member contends it is not the start of a movement to "contain" China, nor the beginning of a formal three-way military alliance.

I see this as essentially baby first steps, which are important, but ought not to be exaggerated, because we still have a long way to go before this becomes a serious military exercise," he said.

Nevertheless, Chinese diplomats and journalists attending the symposium confirm that the new military cooperation is causing concern in Beijing.

Maharaj Krishan Rasgotra, a veteran Indian diplomat and former foreign secretary, told the gathering, both Japan and India are taking larger political and military roles in Asia. Therefore, he says, military cooperation between the two democracies is a natural evolution.

"Both countries have a very clear, very powerful interest in the stability and security of the Indian Ocean," he noted.

Security in the Indian Ocean is of paramount strategic importance to both India and Japan, to ensure an unimpeded supply of oil from the Middle East.

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awangmamat

An interesting development.

Things which I would watch out for:

1. Will India carry out similar exercises with Vietnam? Not sure if it has already done so in the past.

2. Will there be a greater PLAN presence in the Indian Ocean? Gwadar, perhaps? Myanmar?

3. Will Iran join a China-Pakistan alliance in the Indian Ocean?

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joey2

1. dont know
2. nothing tit for tat stuff, regular exercise.
3. iran? and pakistan? not really.

wkllaw

They say they are trying to keep stability in the indian ocean, isn't that pretty much saying that if China's military buildup becomes disruptive to the region's stability then they will do something, Bush did twist the term torture and he could also twist the term stability to fit America's plans, but this is probably something the U.S is doing to increase their ties to their allies in the region to respond to threats other than China and national disasters .

aviator

1. I dont think so.
2. Yes , may be not in myanmar but in B'desh and Sri Lanka.
3. Again I dont think so. iran has no interest in containing India.

cheetah

I wonder what the russians are thinking about all this.

wkllaw

1. I find it unlikely currently.
2. yes, of course now that the area there is becoming more important for them.
3. I find that unlikely, Iran has not much interest with these nations except as business partners.

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Those who can't change become extinct.

kams

1. India supports VPN very actively. It has supplied spares for Vietnamese Missile boats in the past, provides training for their Officers. IN ships have made Port of Call in the past. Bilateral Naval Exercises have taken place as early as 1998.

2. Gwadar - sure.

3. You think Iran is happy about Gwadar?

joey2

mmmmm

xrough

I think it's just an military exercise..China should not be worried if it they are not doing wrong..

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