China’s continuous dominance in the Indo-Pacific region is creating problems for other continental nations 

Geostrategic Rivalry in the Indo-Pacific

• Maritime Importance of the Indo-Pacific: The region’s maritime space, spanning from the west coast of the Americas to the east coast of Africa, is of prime strategic significance. This vast area, approximately 8000×8000 km, is home to around 36 countries and accounts for two-thirds of the global economy.
• Geostrategic Competition in the Indo-Pacific: The Indo-Pacific is increasingly becoming a zone of rivalry, driven by the rise of China. Countries in the region face pressure to choose sides, with some aligning with China, others countering its influence, and many hedging their bets.
  • Competing impulses of rivalry dominate the region as each actor seeks to maximize its strategic position.
• Changing Security Dynamics:  Recurring skirmishes in the Western Pacific and aggressive actions aimed at Taiwan highlight the growing tensions. China’s assertiveness in the high Himalayas adds to the region’s volatile security environment. 
  • The escalating risks of conflict underscore the rapidly changing geopolitical landscape of the Indo-Pacific.

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Competing Notions in the Indo-Pacific

• Dominant Perspectives: The Indo-Pacific as a single geostrategic space where like-minded nations, led by the US, collaborate to counter China’s rise through alliances like QUAD and AUKUS. 
  • Skepticism about the Indo-Pacific as a unified security construct due to lack of trust and differing strategic orientations of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
• Distinct Strategic Orientations: The Western Pacific is marked by military competition, while the Indian Ocean remains relatively pacific. The Pacific Ocean has a well-defined strategic identity, whereas the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) lacks a cohesive identity.
• Maritime vs. Land Dimensions: The prevailing view emphasizes the maritime domain, sidelining the relevance of land in security considerations. Land remains critical as governments, populations, and conflicts are primarily based on and driven by land. 
  • (For ex: Russia attacked Ukraine through land and Israel -Hamas conflict also took place through land) 
  • The key question is how the land factor influences maritime strategies and shapes a State’s security policies.

 Land-Maritime Security Nexus

• Influence of Land problems on Maritime Security: The debate on Indo-Pacific security must consider how land contexts shape maritime policies, as social dynamics on land often give rise to maritime challenges like piracy, illicit fishing, and smuggling. 
  • Incidents like the Nord Stream attack highlight how land conflicts can spill over into the maritime domain.
• Strategic Orientation: The strategic orientation of states is influenced by their geographic characteristics, with landlocked and peninsular states focusing more on land security, while coastal states balance both land and maritime priorities. 
  • Countries on the Arabian Peninsula will focus on coastal security 
  • Countries like India, Thailand, Vietnam, and South Korea prioritize land forces due to contested land borders.
• Maritime Priorities of Island nations: Island nations such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, and Japan focus on securing territorial waters, internal waterways, ports, and coastal defense, giving maritime security precedence. 
  • Taiwan, due to its proximity to China, adopts a coastal and air defense posture over traditional maritime security strategies.
• Role of Land Forces: Land-based military components offer greater scope and scale for large-scale operations to counter adversaries like China. 
  • Land forces play a crucial role in consolidating gains made by naval and air forces, and are vital for deterring and defending vital national interests. 
• Dominance of Land forces: Land armies constitute about 68% of military forces in the Indo-Pacific, with countries like India (85% of the Armed forces are deployed in the Himalayas),  Indonesia (75%), and the Philippines (70%) committing a significant portion of their forces to land defense. 
  • A reduction in land forces could weaken a state’s overall security, as demonstrated by India’s need to maintain strength in the Himalayas while also securing its maritime interests.

Way Forward for India 

• Balancing Land and Sea Priorities: India’s maritime security strategy must balance competing land and sea interests, especially with China’s aggressive posture along both land borders and in the Indian Ocean.
• Budgeting Dilemmas: India currently allocates 14-17% of its defense budget to the navy, highlighting the challenge of prioritizing naval strength, particularly in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), without neglecting land defense.
• Defining India’s Oceanic Interests: India must assess whether its maritime interests are more focused on the Gulf region or extend to the Malacca Strait and the Pacific, to better tailor its maritime security agenda.
• Shifting from Continental to Maritime Strategy: A shift from India’s traditional continental outlook to a more maritime-focused strategy will require significant policy changes, likely contingent on resolving border issues with China.
• Managing Vulnerabilities: India must balance its naval capabilities and vulnerabilities in the crowded and contested Western Pacific, avoiding over-extension and ensuring focused maritime security priorities.

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Conclusion

Relying on extra-regional partners may be tempting, but it’s not prudent given India’s limited military capacities. Focusing on consolidating influence in the Indian Ocean Region makes more sense.

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