Sino-India Geo-Strategic Competition in the Indian Ocean: An Analysis

Abstract

With China increasing its military influence in the IOR, it has become a significant concern for India. This thesis aims to investigate the possible Chinese initiatives in the IOR that will enhance the Chinese naval ambition and power projection, which threatens the Indian strategic position and its economic influence. The implications revealed by the findings are possible challenges posed by China’s expanding military bases and commercial interests to India's security and its growing naval power and investment interests. Militarily, China’s expansionist naval goals and the prospect of new military bases being set up could threaten India’s maritime supremacy and security. Economically, China’s economic undertakings such as trade and construction work for the BRI could decrease India’s influence. These changes could further increase the likelihood of instability in the region, as the struggle for power between India and China could render military hostilities, border conflicts, arms races and further diminishing regional cooperation. This study contributes to the existing knowledge of Chinese Indian evolving dynamics of the competition in the IOR and focuses on their strategic activities and implications for the region's stability. Where the competitive landscape is more concerning; however, it is not strictly in regional security; it impacts economic relations and trade. The pressure will likely increase as the competition increases. Therefore, Chinese and Indian competition in the IOR is a geo-strategic contestation that encapsulates current trends in the changing geopolitics of power in Asia and beyond. Such rivalry in geostrategy between China and India, henceforth over IOR, symbolizes one complex and multi-sided phenomenon in general and embodies, more than others, the comprehensive aspirations and apprehensions of these two powers at the rise. Sharing the interests about security and stability in this region, competing vision and strategies both may affect how the IOR is destined to look. Cooperation, competition, and conflict will shape the region's future as both nations pursue their strategic objectives. Understanding this dynamic is essential for policymakers, scholars, and stakeholders seeking to navigate the challenges and opportunities presented by this evolving rivalry.