$@rJen
BANNED
- Joined
- Aug 5, 2012
- Messages
- 6,326
- Reaction score
- -21
- Country
- Location
Delhi purposefully riles Beijing as tension mounts in South China Sea
Published November 4, 2015 | By admin
SOURCE: TNN
: As tension mounts in South China Sea (SCS), where the US just sent a guided-missile destroyer to challenge China’s fanciful dashed line claim, India is showing it is open to not only aggressively seeking freedom of navigation and overflight throughout the region but also ensuring disputes are resolved in keeping with international laws.
Top government officials here said it was “on purpose” that India mentioned SCS also as West Philippine Sea after foreign minister Sushma Swaraj’s recent meeting with her counterpart from the Philippines, secretary of foreign affairs Albert F Del Rosario.
It was the Philippines which insisted that SCS be referred to also as West Philippine Sea in the joint statement issued after the meeting. West Philippine Sea is the name which Manila has been using only for the last 4-5 years to challenge Beijing’s claims over 90% of SCS waters, including the Spratly island chain near the Philippines.
This was the first time that India referred to SCS also as West Philippine Sea in any official document. It is significant for India that 60% of India’s seaborne trade passes through Malacca Strait which opens into SCS. According to government sources here, India is also concerned about China’s expanding naval presence in the Indian Ocean region and the fact that Beijing is looking to acquire a base for its navy in Djibouti, located strategically on the horn of Africa.
While PM Narendra Modi did not allude to this issue in his meeting last week with Djibouti President Ismail Guelleh, the government remains concerned about how a base in Djibouti could allow China to operate more freely in Indian Ocean, nullifying the advantage of geography to India in overseeing some of world’s busiest shipping lanes.
During Modi’s summit meet with President Obama last year the NDA government seemed to suggest a subtle shift in India’s position over SCS by mentioning for the first time, in a joint India-US statement, the need for freedom of navigation and overflight in the region.In the meeting with Rosario, India also called for settlement of all disputes by peaceful means in accordance with universal principles of international law.
India’s decision to follow the ruling of international arbitration in its maritime dispute with Bangladesh seems to have given it the moral right to pitch for similar arbitration in SCS disputes.
Published November 4, 2015 | By admin
SOURCE: TNN
: As tension mounts in South China Sea (SCS), where the US just sent a guided-missile destroyer to challenge China’s fanciful dashed line claim, India is showing it is open to not only aggressively seeking freedom of navigation and overflight throughout the region but also ensuring disputes are resolved in keeping with international laws.
Top government officials here said it was “on purpose” that India mentioned SCS also as West Philippine Sea after foreign minister Sushma Swaraj’s recent meeting with her counterpart from the Philippines, secretary of foreign affairs Albert F Del Rosario.
It was the Philippines which insisted that SCS be referred to also as West Philippine Sea in the joint statement issued after the meeting. West Philippine Sea is the name which Manila has been using only for the last 4-5 years to challenge Beijing’s claims over 90% of SCS waters, including the Spratly island chain near the Philippines.
This was the first time that India referred to SCS also as West Philippine Sea in any official document. It is significant for India that 60% of India’s seaborne trade passes through Malacca Strait which opens into SCS. According to government sources here, India is also concerned about China’s expanding naval presence in the Indian Ocean region and the fact that Beijing is looking to acquire a base for its navy in Djibouti, located strategically on the horn of Africa.
While PM Narendra Modi did not allude to this issue in his meeting last week with Djibouti President Ismail Guelleh, the government remains concerned about how a base in Djibouti could allow China to operate more freely in Indian Ocean, nullifying the advantage of geography to India in overseeing some of world’s busiest shipping lanes.
During Modi’s summit meet with President Obama last year the NDA government seemed to suggest a subtle shift in India’s position over SCS by mentioning for the first time, in a joint India-US statement, the need for freedom of navigation and overflight in the region.In the meeting with Rosario, India also called for settlement of all disputes by peaceful means in accordance with universal principles of international law.
India’s decision to follow the ruling of international arbitration in its maritime dispute with Bangladesh seems to have given it the moral right to pitch for similar arbitration in SCS disputes.
