To effectively manage and maintain maritime stability and security, in all of the three most dangerous Security challenge ridden (politico-military) conflict regions, namely the Middle East, the India-Pakistan conflict zone and China-North Korea sphere, it becomes essential that three nations with common and converging interests cooperate with each other with or without treatise of agreements, in all possible spheres, as formal or informal partners in trilateral cooperation.
By Amit Mukherjee
PBC-Post Doctoral
Research Fellowship 2015
National Security
Studies Center,University of Haifa, Israel
Image Attribute: Indian Navy's Aircraft Carriers - INS Vikramaditya and INS Viraat at Navy Fleet Review / Source: MoD, Government of India
To effectively
manage and maintain maritime stability and security, in all of the three most dangerous
Security challenge ridden (politico-military) conflict regions, namely the
Middle East, the India-Pakistan conflict zone and China-North Korea sphere, it
becomes essential that three nations with common and converging interests
cooperate with each other with or without treatise of agreements, in all possible
spheres, as formal or informal partners in trilateral cooperation.
Both Israel
and USA have not yet partnered the UNCLOS - United Nations Convention on the
Law of Sea, agreement for anti-piracy due to their security and other domestic
concerns. However US and India share a lot of understanding which includes
framework for India US Maritime cooperation, which has provisions for joint
operations and training other than common objectives and goals for securing threats
in the maritime domain.This however can be made into a trilateral area for
cooperation against a menace that has become a 24.5 billion USD loss to
international trade and according to another research is more than 5- 6 billion
USD annual, for efforts towards countering it. Loss due to damages caused by
piracy attacks brings the figure to around 9 billion USD annually, according to
a data from the Indian Ship Owners Association.
According to a World Bank
report the loss due to Piracy has been a billion USD in the Indian Ocean region
alone. Given such information and circumstances the agreement between Indian
and U.S. counterparts in 2006 was the first step in this direction, in which
a Maritime Security Cooperation Agreement commits both countries to
comprehensive cooperation in protecting the free flow of commerce and addressed
a wide variety of threats to maritime security, including piracy and the illicit
trafficking of weapons of mass destruction and related material, was
formulated. Israel shapes it’s navy according to its security concerns and as a
coastal nation, given it is surrounded by hostile elements, states in its
neighborhood.
However the chances of it getting directly or indirectly engulfed
in the economic consequences of global piracy, if piracy continues to grow
unabated at the current trends, more so with possible involvement of
anti-Israeli elements that may voluntarily or by design mark ships bound for
the ports of Israel as a viable target for Piracy attacks, is high. Israeli
security firms have already started to provide professional anti-piracy security
options to various ships.
It would suit
the interests of all three partnering nations with increased coordinated patrol
and operational activities for joint anti-piracy missions. It has been done by
India, Japan and China, in 2012, in this case, despite being neighbors with
conflicting interests. Since 2008 the EU has been actively participating in
several joint EU mechanisms like CSDP (Common Security Defense Policy),
ATLANTA, and NATO along with individual member nations to fight the growing
dangers and menace of piracy in the world.
The most risky
areas in any Sea Lanes of Communications are those that have choke points and
as such the most notably are the Gulf of Aden, Strait of Hormuz near the
Arabian Sea, and Malacca straits in the Indian Ocean. They have become the bane
of present and future concerns, in light of Somali piracy which is the largest
contributor to this problem, among piracy by other groups. With major part of
the world including EU not having any influence beyond the western Indian ocean
region for providing security cover, it becomes feasible for major naval powers
like US, and India, that have the opportunity to tie efforts to reduce cost of
anti- piracy operations, by sharing the large area of responsibility, in the
area of operations, since as of now and in the past the cost of carrying out
anti-piracy operations out-weighs the losses in the Indian ocean region. This
would be an extension of the ongoing anti-piracy multilateral effort of the US
Combined Task Force CTF- 151, along with European and individual effort from
India and other south Asian nations like Japan and South Korea. Even though the
latest data indicates that the threat to piracy is reduced, in the Gulf of Aden
Region off the coast of Somalia, the gain could be short-lived if effective
counter measures are not kept in place.
India and the
USA conduct joint naval exercises called Malabar Exercises. India also like the
USA, carries out joint exercise with France - Varuna, Singapore Simbex, Japan,
UK-Konkan, among few others in the recent past. Dedicated sharing of naval
intelligence and sea borne communication messages could lead in a new era of
maritime security operations within the trilateral cooperation gambit. The
Indian Ocean Rim which is the carrier of 65% of oil reserves are located in the
Indian Ocean. 40% offshore oil- production comes from areas touching the Indian
Ocean region, and 70% of petroleum products are transported from this Indian
Ocean region. It is also the focus point of shifting US concerns in the
vicinity of South China Sea and China‘s growing ambitions for garnering its
influence in the region to secure its political, diplomatic, security and
resource requirements, as mentioned earlier. The recent remarks made by the G7
nations, 2015, regarding their concerns with the growing tension in the South
China Sea, reflects similar concerns. This makes the Indian Ocean possibly the
hottest contested flash point for conflicting interests and a very
opportunistic place for activities that relate to maritime security concerns
including piracy, in the future. It draws the ascending interests of USA and
India and in relative terms, the Israeli common interests, and gives it a
platform for merging a doctrine or policy among these three nations for
integrated naval activity and cooperation for consolidating maritime security
interests. Even though India does not officially term or mention the Chinese
threats in the international arena, in a recent visit to Japan the Prime
Minister reference to counter ―expansionist mindset, has been in many ways
construed as a veiled reference to Chinese assertiveness in the Asian region in
general. Although India still maintains an official policy not to be seen as
grouped in any Anti-China military coalition, its individual effort through the
look east policy to make collaborative ventures on economic and military
relations with nations in the South East Asia alludes towards a gradual
preparedness and creating a deterring effect. This it is attempting to do
through collaborations on various collective common interests with partnering
nations, of the region (South East Asia), in the eventuality of an aggression
by the Chinese high handedness, if it happens in the future. For such an
eventuality the American support will be crucial. So even though India refused
to officially acquiesce to the American plans of “Pivot to Asia”, the recent
news of India intending to carry out trilateral meeting with Japan and
Australia in effect alludes towards similar common concerns viz. China.
Israel on its
side views growing Indian Maritime strength with the Indian Navy as an asset to
create a strategic military naval partnership and a toe hold in the Indian
ocean, for prospective tests for missiles and other naval warfare systems,
which it may not find conducive to do in the Mediterranean neighborhood given
present European and Middle Eastern political and security concerns and hostile
watchfulness. Reports of Israel having tested its missile in Indian Ocean has
surfaced in many podiums and research references. The Israeli concern for
maritime security of trade items routing through the Bab El Mandeb Straits sea
route as life line for transporting goods, is paramount, since the landed
border nations would not allow transit of the goods due to hostile relations.
The prowess of the Indian Navy was recently seen in Operation Rahat which
rescued more than 5600 people included 4640 Indians and 960
foreign nationals who belonged to 41 nations. India‘s strategic reach it is
what India brings to the table for serving interests during war torn situations
for other nations.
Maritime
security and Naval cooperation is possible in the International waters for
joint doctrine and objectives of security, since its functions for common or
collective acts of security are permissible in international waters, unlike
land or air force.The Navy gets
to move around in International waters within the United Nations framework of
roles and responsibility which cannot be said to be the case with any
conventional national Army or Air Force unless under UN mandate.
About The Author:
Amit Mukherjee (E-3696-2016), PBC-Post Doctoral Research
Fellowship 2015. National Security Studies Center,University of Haifa, Israel
This article is an
excerpt from a research article, titled "India-Israel-US Trilateral
Cooperation Security Perspective: Challenges and Scope" published at FPRC
New Delhi Journal.
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