China On A Fast Track To Increase Its Strategic Hold In Indian Ocean Zone

China is tightening its grip and strategic strangle hold around India faster than perceived earlier.

But, at the same time, Chinese move can bring about radical changes in security alignments in the Indian sub-continent.

In its hurry to gain dominance over the entire area around India, China is demanding more and more access and presence in countries surrounding India.

China has asked Pakistan to concede land for setting up military outposts throughout Pakistan to guard its assets created under the Belt and Road Initiative, according to a recent report. This has put the Pakistani government and military authorities in a dilemma. The Chinese ambassador to Pakistan has already met the new prime minister and the defence heads to lay out the pans for defence outposts in the country.

China has also asked for creation of similar facilities in Afghanistan from the Taliban authorities, which apparently, they have refused outright.

Conceding the Chinese requests for any number of military outposts in the name of guarding its economic interests in Pakistan would virtually mean bartering away its sovereignty and freedom of action. This will be a prelude to Pakistan going back into a neo-colonial status under China.

China is further demanding facilities for setting up a military airbase in lands adjoining the Gwadar port and work relating to the airbase is nearing completion. The facility in southern Pakistan could become a huge headache for the Indian defence as well.

As has been witnessed in Sr Lanka recently, China does not bother too much about the niceties of requests and permission from the host countries. It simply takes over and implement its requests unilaterally at its own choice. The Chinese have for example kept on cruising towards Sri Lanka’s Hambantota port, despite the latter’s request for deferring the visit, and arrived in port on its own timing and terms.

Real and forced concessions from Pakistan to China for these facilities would inevitably result in souring of their hitherto honey-sweet relationship. Already, attacks on Chinese expats in Pakistan, resulting in several deaths, have created a serious rift. These incidents have been grabbed by China to push ahead with establishment of military outposts around BRI projects in Pakistan.

That might mean, China having military resources from the north of the country to its southern shores in the Arabian Sea. At any point, such extensive military presence in a country, which is financially bankrupt and caught in a debt trap to China, could imply a total take over in a flash. Chia can demand immediate payment of its financial dues and failure can mean capture.

As things stand now with Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves at the bottom of the barrel, China can cause a financial crash in Pakistan anytime it so wishes. The inconvenient fact is that Pakistan is in no position to honour its due debt repayments. China could then give effect to a seizure of all its assets from the control of the Pakistanis.

Meanwhile, the Afghans are proving to be a tough nut to crack for the Chinese. The relations between the Chinese and the Afghan authorities have started becoming more suspicious already and Afghans are defiant towards the Chinese military.

The Afghan Taliban has refused to hand over any of the Islamic Uyghur militants to the Chinese authorities and the Uighur militant bases are fully operational from Afghanistan.

On the other hand, the Taliban is said to be favourable to the idea of sending their military personnel to India for field level training and exercises. There is no permanent friendship or enmity in diplomatic relations and the Talibans are open to the idea of cosying up towards India for developing strategic capabilities to ensure their operational freedom.

Undeterred by any of these hiccups to its designs, China is of course using a long-term plan of developing critical bases all around to augment its military outreach in areas far away from home.

China has sent its so-called research and scientific studies vessels Yuang Yuan in the Sri Lankan port of Hambantota. Some satellite pictures confirm that China’s overseas naval station in Djibouti at the Horn of Africa is fully operational. The Djibouti base gives China unique presence in the whole of Indian Ocean.

The Gwadar port in southern Pakistan is almost complete and it can offer base to Chinese navy and other military assets, including airbases as reported. That would be critical for China in its bid to dominate the Indian Ocean and even the Arabian sea, in addition to controlling the entry into the Red Sea which gives access to the European waters. (IPA Service)