Increasing China’s dominance along the eastern border and Indian Ocean, a concern: Admiral Lanba

New Delhi: Increasing Chinese dominance and chauvinism along the Eastern border and in the Indian Ocean is a cause of concern, warned the Indian Naval Chief, Admiral Lanba. There are reports that China has sent six warships to the Indian Ocean in view of the Maldives emergency. China has augmented the air defence by deploying the ‘J-10’ and ‘J-11’ fighter jets near the Indian border. Admiral Lanba seemed to be expressing the concerns felt by India over this.

Admiral Lamba expressed his concerns saying, “Last year China had intruded the Doklam region. China has been consistently trying to intrude into India’s eastern border. Chinese financial and military power has increased in a big way in a short span of time. As China is increasing its strength speedily, India needs to be cautious.There could be a big threat to the ‘Siliguri Corridor’, observing the current Chinese activities.” The narrow stretch of land connecting the North Eastern States to the rest of India is called the ‘Siliguri Corridor’. Admiral Lanba has underlined a potential threat to this part from China.

The movement of the Chinese warships and submarines have increased in the Indian Ocean. In spite of five Chinese warships deployed in this region, there are reports of six more being deployed in the Indian Ocean. It is clarified that China wants to deliver a ‘message’ to India sending these warships, against the backdrop of Maldives crisis. There is an appeal made to India to intervene militarily to solve political crisis in Maldives. But, China has been warning that India should not interfere in the internal matters of Maldives. It is against this background that Chinese warships have been arrived in the Indian Ocean.

It is clear that India has taken a serious note of this Chinese deployment. Eight warships have been deployed in the Straits of Malacca, Sunda and Lombok, considered to be the entry points to the Indian Ocean. Sources confirmed that India has adopted a policy to continue the deployment of eight warships in the region since the last six months. Sources also added that India has taken this cautious step to keep aneye on the Chinese movements.