The trilateral maritime security agreement Maldives and Sri Lanka, eyed by China and other world military powers because of their significant geopolitical locations, have entered into a trilateral cooperation with India on Maritime Security of far reaching importance. China has adopted Sri Lanka as one of the gems in its String of Pearls strategy to mark its strong presence in the Indian Ocean and encircle and contain India. And recently China has deepened its strategic… Read More »Bolstering Foothold

Requirements of OPV and frigates To be able to gauge the number of offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) and frigates, India will require in the second quarter of the 21st century -2025 to 2050- an appreciation of the relative roles of the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard. This will have to be made on the basis of a blue-water and brown-water categorization of their respective jurisdictions. At the moment the entire maritime defence is… Read More »Coastal Vigil

Strategic importance of Gulf of Aden and prospects of maritime trade Incidents of maritime piracy in the Gulf of Aden have posed a significant strategic challenge for the security of global trade. Despite a reduction in rampant pirate attacks in the ‘pirate-alley’ last year, the challenge is far from over. Piracy will remain a recurrent problem till the root cause of the problem is not tackled. When piracy became rampant in 2008, flag states and… Read More »Playground of Pirates

Era of unmanned coastal surveillance Many countries including India are facing the constant threats of terrorist infiltration via sea route. The real time monitoring of the thousands of vessels, big and tiny, are posing a big challenge to the security managers. After the November, 2008 terrorist attacks on Mumbai, the Indian defence establishment has been on an overdrive to install surveillance systems on its 7000 kms long coastlines, comprising mainly the coastal radars but India… Read More »Timely steps

Coastal patrolling and unmanned surveillance After the 2008 terrorist attack on Mumbai and the feverish efforts launched to close the gaps in the maritime security infrastructure, India has come a long way in ensuring that another such attack from the sea will be more difficult to execute. How synergetic will be the effort will only be known when the next crisis occurs and we have another round of blame game and accusations as happened after… Read More »Bridging gap

The state of maritime surveillance and security appears to be no better than it was when Pakistani terrorists came into Mumbai on 26 November 2008. The case in point is the appearance of MT Pavit on the seafront after drifting for about a month in the north Arabian Sea, still drifting from one beach to another endangering shipping in an already accident prone Mumbai harbour. The Indian Navy which was made responsible for the total… Read More »Failing to track: Surveillance at sea and network connectivity

The face that Boko Haram has not only survived the harsh reprisals of 2009 but has also since been able to expand both the reach and scope of its operations ought to be a wakeup call to both the Nigerian government and international community. The suicide bombings targeting symbols of Nigerian state authority and international engagement represent a major advance in Boko Haram’s capabilities and a significant shift in its message. The upsurge in attacks… Read More »Brewing trouble: Growth of Boko Haram in Nigeria

The war in Kachin commenced in June 2011 after the 17-year old ceasefire between the Burmese government and Kachin rebels was broken. The Kachin people in Burma have been demanding autonomy for the past six decades but have been left disappointed. Being a resource-rich region and bordering China, Kachin becomes very important geo-politically. The war between the Burmese tatmadaw and Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the military wing of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), has been… Read More »Getting embroiled: War in Kachin could spell disaster