India’s regional maritime strategy has come to focus recently in view of the following facts:
- The US Department of War has renamed its ‘Indo-Pacific Command’ as ‘Pacific Command’ in June 2026. In fact, the Indo-Pacific Command was established in 2018 to highlight the Importance of India in the US strategy in the Indo-Pacific region. Also, the US is also downplaying QUAD as it did not take interests in the QUAD summit to be held by India in 2025. These developments have serious implications for India’s maritime strategy in this region.
- Indian PM Modi’s three nations visit on 6-11 July, 2026 aimed at not only strengthening India’s Act East policy but also to ramp up India’s maritime strategy in the region. The visit focused on bolstering maritime and defence partnership with these three countries in view of their share objectives of free, open and rule based order in the Indo-pacific region. China is opposed to the rule-based order in the Indo-Pacific region as she has made illegal territorial claims in the South China Sea.
Let Us See How India has shaped its Maritime Strategy in the Indo-Pacific Region and what challenges she is facing in implementing this strategy.
The idea of Indo-Pacific gained currency in the middle of the first decade of 21st century. Now the region of Indo-Pacific has become the global arena for both growth as well as contestation among major powers. All the major powers, US, China, Japan, Australia, India and European nations like UK, France and Germany have displayed their stakes and inclination to get involved in this strategically significant region. The notion of Indo-Pacific is of relatively new origin. The word ‘Indo-Pacific’, for the first time, was used by the Indian strategic expert Gurpreet S. Khurana in 2007 in an article published in Strategic Analysis (Mercy:2018). Same year, the Japanese PM Shinzo Abe while addressing the Indian Parliament floated the idea of ‘Confluence of Two Oceans’, emphasizing the need for consultation and cooperation across Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. Outside India, the notion received its first official approval in Australia, where the ‘Indo-Pacific’ region was mentioned as a vital region for the protection of Australia’s core national interests in the Defence White Paper Published by the government in 2013. Since then, the term has become focus of strategic discourse as well as diplomacy.
It is agreed by all scholars and nations that the Indo-Pacific region is the region formed by the confluence of Indian Ocean and the Western Pacific Ocean, but they differ on the point as to what area is included in the Indo-Pacific. While some scholar scholars (Scott: 2012; Rao: 2013, Arun Prakash: 2013) favour inclusion of a narrow and core area where the Indian and Pacific Oceans meet, other scholars (Bishoyi: 2016) include larger area from the East Coast of Africa through Indian Ocean up to the Western Pacific Ocean. The second version seems more plausible and largely endorsed by the Indian policy-makers. Thus, Indo-Pacific region includes the areas falling under the tropical Indian Ocean from East Coast of Africa to the Bay of Bengal, Strait of Malacca, South China Sea, Philippines Sea and Western Pacific.
There is always unanimity among scholars about the rising strategic and economic significance of Indian Ocean. The Indo-Pacific Ocean is a backbone of global economy as it holds 65 percent of the world population and contribute over 60 percent to the global GDP. Asian countries like China, India, Japan, South Korea, and all ASEAN countries drive this global economic growth (Dasgupta: 2025). The Indo-Pacific is a region of growing strategic challenges, largely due to contested geographical boundaries. Furthermore, it is home to three of the world’s largest economies (China, India and Japan), as well as seven of the world’s largest military forces (European Parliament: 2023). The Indo-Pacific transports 80 percent ($3.4 trillion trade) of the global trade and 40 percent (32.2 million barrels of crude oil daily) of global oil supply (Dasgupta: 2025). Besides the threat of piracy and other extremist threat (Houthis in Yemen) the security of Indo-Pacific sea routes assumes additional salience in view of the fact that the two important maritime choke points- Bal al Mandeb and the Gulf of Malacca are located on the either side of the Indo-Pacific. Also, the security of coastal states of Indo-Pacific, including that of India is contingent upon the peace, stability and security in the Indo-pacific region.
The economic significance of the Indo-Pacific Ocean is equally important, as it hold the huge amount of energy and other marine resources. Many countries including India and China are looking for harnessing deep-sea marine resources including polymetallic nodules. In view of the above facts in last two decades, with China’s rise as a military and economic power, her aggression in South China Sea and Taiwan strait, her efforts to gain strategic foothold in the region earlier through String of Pearls strategy and now through BRI framework, America’s Pivot to Asia strategy, strategic hedging against China through QUAD and AUKUS, India’s expanding influence in South-East Asia through Act East Policy, the Indo-Pacific region has increasingly became an arena of strategic contestation. It is in this background that India’s regional maritime needs to assessed.
India’s Maritime Strategy
India is placed at the centre of the Indo-Pacific region. India’s strategic interests in the maritime security need no emphasis. With 7500 kms long coastline and outlying islands Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the East and Lakshadweep and other islands in the West, India’s security is closely related with peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific. India’s all most all trade routes, including crucial energy supply routes pass through the Indo-Pacific and its choke points. The Indo-Pacific has close bearing on her economic growth as well. India has tried to harness the benefits blue economy including both living and non-living marine resources for its growth. These strategic and economic interests are persistent imperatives for India’s viable maritime strategy.
India’s maritime strategy is largely contained in the three documents released by the Integrated Headquarters of Ministry of Defence (Navy), Government of India: Indian Maritime Doctrine, 2004; Indian Maritime strategy, 2007; the Indian Maritime Doctrine, 2009 and latest version Indian maritime Doctrine, 2015. Thus in a span of 10 years, the role and strategic position of Indian Navy was updated and expanded four times. This demonstrates the growing significance of Indian Navy in the grand strategy of India in the post-cold globalized world. It should be noted in the outset that India’s maritime strategy is an integral part of India’s changing foreign policy, India’s defence perception and present and projected role of India in the global affairs. The three key changes introduced in the latest maritime doctrine in 2015 are noteworthy. First, the area of India’s maritime interest has been expanded both south-eastwards and westwards. The South-East Indian Ocean, including sea routes to the Pacific Ocean and littoral regions; the Mediterranean Sea and its littoral region; and the West Coast of Africa and its littoral region are added as new ‘secondary’ areas of interest. Second, the reconfiguration of ‘primary’ and ‘secondary’ areas of interest and inter-se prioritization between the two. The South- West Indian Ocean and Red Sea, which was earlier considered as ‘secondary’ areas, are now encompassed within the ‘primary area’. Third, the strategy placed high emphasis on Choke points of Indian ocean. The third major amendment relates to altered emphasis on maritime choke- points of the Indian Ocean, such as Hormuz Strait, Bab-el-Mandeb, Sunda Strait and Lombok Strait (Khurana:2016). In nutshell, the new maritime strategy reflects two trends- aligning India’s maritime strategy with her diversifying interests; and making it in tune with changing strategic dynamics of the Indo-Pacific region.
However, in operational terms, broadly, India’s maritime strategy in the Indo-Pacific is based on three pillars-Enhancing National Capability, Strengthening Regional Cooperation and Promoting Global Strategic Collaboration. The domestic pillar of India’s maritime strategy consists of boosting her naval capabilities in terms of acquiring advance defence systems like Aircraft Carriers, Submarines, destroyers, frigates, development of defence infrastructure like ports and other naval facilities, and greater integration with other two wings of defence forces. The Regional pillar of India’s maritime strategy involves various initiatives to strengthen maritime cooperation with her immediate maritime neighbours. The third pillar involves greater collaboration and maritime partnership with other global powers like US, Japan, Australia, France, Germany and UK among others. Quad and various multilateral and bilateral naval exercises like Malabar are the best reflection of India’s global maritime strategy.
India’s Regional Maritime Strategy
Among the three pillars of India’s maritime strategy, the regional component has high salience. First, Though India has subscribed to the idea of Indo-pacific, her primary strategic and economic interests lay in the Indian Ocean. India’s security and economic growth is tied to her place in the Indian ocean. Second, it is in the Indian Ocean waters, that India is facing unusual challenge from China’s growing strategic inroads. China’s long list of naval facilities like Kyaukpyiu in Myanmar, Hambantota in Sri Lanka, Gwadar in Pakistan and naval base in Djibouti under the BRI strategy attest this point. In order to secure Indian ocean region, India needs to face emerging Chinese challenge. Also, India is faced with new threats like piracy and extremism in the western side of the Indian Ocean. Thus, in spite of the fact that the Indo-pacific has been projected as a holistic region, the various actors have diverse interests in different sub-regions of the Indo-Pacific. For example, the US, Japan and Australia are more interested in the security in the Western and Central Pacific rather than the Indian Ocean. This subtle point has been noted by other scholars also. According to Darshana Baruah (2020), though India has diplomatic gains in collaborating with global powers in the Indo-Pacific, but due India’s geographic proximity to the island states like Maldives and Sri Lanka, Mauritius and Seychelles, their foreign policy choices will have a direct impact on New Delhi’s security environment. Although the Indo-Pacific presents new opportunities to India’s great power ambitions, India’s priorities and significant investments will remain in the Indian Ocean. Thus, the Indian Ocean will remain a priority strategic area for India within the Indo-Pacific region. Since Indian Ocean is the primary area of concern for her strategic and economic interests, her regional maritime strategy assumes special significance in her global outreach.
Facets of India’s Regional Maritime Strategy
India’s regional maritime security vision focuses on ‘to promote security and stability at sea, and enhance cooperation, mutual understanding and interoperability with maritime forces of friendly nations’(IMMS:2015) by both bilateral and multilateral engagements in the Indian ocean region. The Indian Ocean region faces both traditional and non-traditional threats like piracy, terrorism, threats to trade routes, drug-trafficking and smuggling, maritime disasters, and protection of maritime environment. The security of the sea is equally important for harnessing the befits of blue economy n the coastal region, territorial sea and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). In 2021, India has launched the Deep Sea Mission for research and exploration of deep sea as well as mining of deep sea resources like polymetallic nodules. India’s these broad objectives and the security of Indian Ocean Region on hand in hand in India’s regional maritime strategy.
1.First Responder and Preferred Security Partner: India has been the first responder and preferred security partner in the Indian Ocean region. Way back in 1988, India launched Operation Cactus to counter the armed mercenaries, who captured the Maldivian government offices and infrastructure. India was also the first responder to launch rescue and relief operation during the Tsunami disaster in 2004. India navy has been deployed in the Arabian Sea since 2007 to ensure security of trade routes passing through Red Sea and counter challenges posed by pirates in the Somalian Coast. In order to counter the threat posed by Houthi rebels, Indian Navy launched the Operation Sankalp in December, 2023. Under this operation, the Indian navy has played a pivotal role as the ‘First Responder’ and ‘Preferred Security Partner’ in the Indian Ocean Region. India’s naval ships, aircraft and Special Forces have demonstrated an unflinching resolve to ‘secure the seas’ and protect the maritime community from various non-traditional threats present in the region. Based on the threat assessment in the region, the Indian Navy is conducting maritime security operations in three areas of operations viz Gulf of Aden and adjoining areas, Arabian Sea and off the East Coast of Somalia (PIB:2024).
2. Colombo Security Conclave (CSC): The CSC was formed in 2011 as a trilateral maritime security grouping of India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. Later Mauritius joined as a fourth member and Bangladesh and Seychelles joined as observers in the CSC. It aims to expand regional cooperation in the five areas namely Maritime Safety and Security, Countering Terrorism and Radicalization, Combating Trafficking and Transnational Organized Crime, Cyber Security, Protection of Critical Infrastructure and Technology, and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief. In recent years, India and Mauritius have developed close maritime partnership. In 2024, India has inaugurated the Agalega Airstrip and Saint James Jetty, amongst other development projects on Agalega Island in Mauritius. Agalega’s remote and strategic location and proximity to Seychelles, Madagascar, and Diego Garcia would help India closely monitor the entire region. This will boost security cooperation between the two nations through joint maritime patrolling, monitoring of EEZ, hydrography, and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief programs (Kumar: 2024).
3. SAGAR Initiative: The Indian PM announced India’s SAGAR (Security And Growth for All in the Region) Initiative duringhis visit to Mauritius in 2015, It aims at safeguarding India’s maritime interests and promotion of cooperation among the littoral state and creating an environment of peace and stability in the IOR. It represents a nexus of maritime cooperation, maritime security, along with sustainable economic development. More specifically it strives for Enhancement of maritime security; Capacity Building throughcooperation for smooth facilitation of economic trade and maritime security; promoting collective vision to deal with natural disasters and maritime threats like piracy, terrorism and emergent non-state actors; and Working towards sustainable regional development through enhanced collaboration. Indian Navy has been collaborating with navies of Indian Ocean Region on several initiatives such as joint naval exercises, coordinated patrols, information sharing, humanitarian and disaster relief, capacity building and other diplomatic engagements. During his visit to Mauritius in March, 2025, the Indian PM Modi has announced the MAHASAGAR (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security Across the Regions) initiative to broaden the scope of India’s regional maritime security. Indian Navy has launched its maiden initiatives of Indian Ocean Ship (Sukanya) on 5 April, 2025 in the Southwest Indian Ocean with a combined crew of India and nine Friendly Foreign Countries (Comoros, Kenya, Madagascar, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, South Africa).This initiative will further consolidate Indian Navy’sstature as the ‘Preferred Security Partner’ and ‘First Responder’ in Indian Ocean Region (PIB:2025).
4. IFC-IOR- The India Navy has launched the Information Fusion Centre for the Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) in 2018. The IFC-IOR has been established at Gurugram along with the Information Management and Analysis Centre. The IFC-IOR aims at strengthening maritime security in the region and beyond, by building a common coherent maritime situation picture and acting as a maritime information hub for the region. It would ensure that the entire region is benefitted by mutual collaboration and exchange of information and understanding the concerns and threats which are prevalent in the region.
5. The Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS), established in 2008 by the Indian Navy, is another regional mechanism for promoting India’s maritime interest in the IOR. It acts as a forum for increase maritime security cooperation, providing a forum for discussion of regional maritime issues and promotes friendly relationships among the member nations. India-Sri Lanka –Maldives is a trilateral forum to promote maritime cooperation among the three countries.
6. Indo-Pacific Ocean Initiative (IPOI): Indian launched IPOI at the 14th East Asian Summit in 2019. It aims to strengthen maritime boundaries and partnerships, focusing on free trade and sustainable resource usage. It encompasses seven thematic areas, including resource development, resilient infrastructure, security, and marine environment.
7. Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA): It is a regional association of littoral states of India Ocean. India is a member IORA. Founded in 1997, it aims, among other things for the strengthening maritime security in the region.
8. BIMSTEC: Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), established in 1997 is the regional forum of seven countries: India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar and Thailand. In view of ongoing stalemate in SAARC, India is promoting BIMSTEC as forum for regional cooperation. BIMSTEC has seven priority areas and each area is assigned to one member as lead country: Trade, Investment and Development- Bangladesh; Environment and Climate Change- Bhutan; Security and Energy- India; Agriculture and Food Security- Myanmar; People-to-people Contact- Nepal; Science, Technology and Innovation-Sri Lanka; and Connectivity- Thailand. During the recently concluded sixth BIBSTEC Summit on 3-4 April in Bangkok, among other things, the member countries signed the BIMSTEC Maritime Transport Agreement, which provides for National Treatment and assistance to vessels, crew and cargo; mutual recognition of certificates/ documents; Joint Shipping Coordination Committee; and dispute settlement mechanism.
Challenges of India’s Regional Maritime Strategy
India’s regional maritime strategy is tuned to India’s other foreign policy initiative like Neighbourhood First Policy and Act East Policy. Like these policy initiatives, India’s regional maritime strategy is also not without challenges. First, it is well documented that China has made deep inroads in the Indian Ocean Region as well as entire South Asia under her policies like BRI and development partnership. Chinese strategic inroads in Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal and Maldives are major challenge to India’s strategy. The post Sheikh Hasina Bangladesh regime is also inclined to develop close ties with China in the Indian Ocean. This sentiment was echoed when Mohammad Yunus, the leader of Bangladesh visited China on 26-29 March, 2025.
Second, the China-Pakistan nexus and China’s presence in Gwadar in the Arabian Sea is another hurdle in India’s status as first responder in the Indian Ocean. Both of these countries have hostile relations with India.
Third, India is yet to develop capacity and resources to match the Chinese challenges. China has rapidly modernized its navy and other defence forces in recent years. Thus, India’s capacity and resources need to be mobilized further to address security threats in the region. India is also faced with continental threat on her land border. Addressing security challenges in both land border as well as the maritime domain puts strains on India’s defence capabilities and resources.
Fourth, the domestic politics of India’s neighbours also undermines India’s regional maritime strategy. In many neighbouring countries of India like Bangladesh, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Nepal, if one of the political parties is close to India, the other party is usually aligned with China. Change in domestic politics creates problems for the smooth progress of India’s regional strategy. For Example, the Maldivian Democratic Party followed ‘India First’ policy but its opponent group led by Muizzu, the present president of Maldives publicly followed ‘India Out’ policy. Consequently, the relations between the two countries faced tensions in 2024.
Conclusion
The notion of Indo-Pacific, though of recent origin, has got wide strategic currency in last wo decades due to its centrality in global economy and its strategic significance. The region’s importance lies in its salience for regional security, huge maritime resources and safety of trade and energy supply routes. In view of the rising aggressiveness of China, the region of Indo-Pacific has emerged as region of global attention and contestation among major global powers like the US, China, India, Australia, Japan and others. India too has deep security, strategic and economic interests in the region. Though India has joined global collaborative initiatives like QUAD to ensure free and open Indo-Pacific, her primary interests lie in the Indian Ocean, which is the western part of larger Indo-Pacific region.
In order to protect her vital interests, India has launched and updated her maritime security strategy from time to time. India’s strategy has three pillars-National, Regional and Global. Yet in view of her specific security and economic interests, the regional maritime strategy has assumed greater focus in India. India ahs taken a number of initiatives like Colombo Security Concave, SAGAR and others to strengthen her status as the first security responder and preferred security provider in the Indian Ocean region. Amidst may bright spots, India’s regional maritime strategy is faced with some challenges like China’s strategic footprints in the region, stress on capability and resources and hostile domestic politics of regional partners. India needs to further strengthen her maritime capabilities and proactive collaborative efforts to promote her status as first responder and net security provider in the Indian Ocean Region.
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