Friday, 17 May, 2024
By: Yash Gupte
The ‘Yuan Wang 5,’ China's most powerful espionage ship had landed in Sri Lanka's port of Hambantota on August 16. Image Source: IANS
According to media reports, India had issued a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM), for a no-fly zone over the Bay of Bengal for a possible missile launch between December 15-16, for a maximum distance of 5400 km.
Chinese surveillance ship ‘Yuan Wang 5’ has re-entered the Indian Ocean while India is preparing for its long-range missile test between December 15-16. A similar scenario unfolded last month when the Indian missile launch was postponed after another vessel, the ‘Yuan Wang 6,’ entered the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). According to the maritime vessel tracking portal marinetraffic.com, the Chinese vessel entered the IOR through Sunda Strait off Indonesia.
According to media reports, India had issued a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM), for a no-fly zone over the Bay of Bengal for a possible missile launch between December 15-16, for a maximum distance of 5400 km. It is predicted that, the no-fly zone is being created for the testing of the Agni-V Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile.
India and Sri Lanka had been locked into a major diplomatic shutdown in August when the ‘Yuan Wang 5’ had docked at the Hambantota Port. The ‘Yuan Wang 5,’ China's most powerful espionage ship had landed in Sri Lanka's port of Hambantota on August 16 with an indication that the island nation may soon host a Chinese naval station. The Yuan Wang 5 is believed to be under the command of the Chinese military, despite Beijing's assurances to the contrary. According to security analysts, it is used to monitor satellites, intercontinental ballistic missiles, and surface operations up to 450 miles away. Military and defense experts have observed that the vessel is equipped with cutting-edge technology, making it one of the Chinese Navy's newest generations of tracking ships. Sri Lanka’s foreign ministry said it has authorized the ship to remain in Hambantota until August 22 to refuel and resupply on the condition that it would refrain from conducting research in Sri Lankan waters.
Why is India concerned?
New Delhi has been keeping a strict vigil on the Chinese vessel. India had raised objections with the Sri Lankan foreign ministry in the past about the docking of the ship at Hambantota port as it considered vessel’s spying capability a major security concern for India. It is being said that the Yuan Wang 5 has the capability to spy over India’s space program which is based in the southern part of the country.
India’s external affairs minister S. Jaishankar had raised India’s concerns with his Sri Lankan counterpart and the assurance was given from the Lankan end that the ship won’t be used for any spying and scientific research activities but in spite of that the docking of the ship remains a grave security concern for India taking into consideration its ongoing confrontations with China in the northern sector.
According to Navy Chief Admiral R. Hari Kumar's comments from the previous week, there are many Chinese ships operating in the area. In addition to the 60 ships of extra-regional forces, he continued, there were perhaps 4-6 Navy ships, research vessels, and fishing vessels. As a resident power, they kept watch of these ships and made sure that "they do not execute any hostile operations."
Growing Chinese domination in Sri Lanka
New Delhi fears that the presence of Chinese ship in Sri Lankan waters could signal the start of the militarization of Chinese infrastructure in Sri Lanka. Beijing's critics have long pointed to Hambantota as a prime example of what they call a Chinese debt trap. During the years 2005-2015, Sri Lanka took heavy loans from China and eventually it increased the island nation’s dependence on the latter. Sri Lanka leased the port of Hambantota to China on a 99-year lease for $1.12 billion, which is less than $1.4 billion less than what Sri Lanka paid a Chinese company to build it.
Considering the present geopolitical developments in the Indian Ocean, the chart below compares the naval capabilities of India and China.
The tale of two navies
Considering the present geopolitical developments in the Indian Ocean, the chart above compares the naval capabilities of India and China.
It can be understood from the above chart that the Chinese navy is superior as compared to the Indian navy. China has around 355 warships as compared to India’s 130. China maintains a maritime supremacy over India in terms of the naval capabilities and equipment too. This is one of the reasons of India’s strict vigilance around the Chinese vessel Yuan Wang 5 at Sri Lanka’s Hambantota port. Now that Sri Lanka is financially and politically unstable, they're raising concerns about how China can utilize its leased port infrastructure for military purposes. They are concerned that this massive infrastructure network may be transformed into an unparalleled network of military bases, invading areas of countries where China has never had foreign army bases before. In order to secure its maritime borders, New Delhi has been constantly engaged in strengthening its naval capabilities but more needs to be done in this regard.
