By Camelia Nathaniel

Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa yesterday acknowledged the prevailing regional concerns over China’s increasing naval presence and economic influence in the Indian Ocean, but defended both as necessities, as China has an industry intensive economy that requires oil imports amounting to more than 200 million tonnes every year.

“Most of these oil imports are sourced from the Middle East and then transported through the Indian Ocean to China. It is obvious that the safety and stability of the Indian Ocean is critical for China’s energy security, and its increasing interest, and increasing naval presence in this region is quite understandable,” he said.

From Sri Lanka’s perspective, he clarified that the Chinese investment in the Hambantota Port was a purely economic venture.

Rajapaksa, who was delivering the keynote address at the Galle Dialogue Maritime Conference in Galle, said the modernization of China’s military, its increasing naval presence in the Indian Ocean and its expanding economic influence in countries in the South Asian region, are viewed with wariness by India and the United States of America.

He also daid the increasing presence of the Chinese Navy in the Indian Ocean, as well as its increasing involvement in counter-piracy operations in the region, is viewed with ….some concern by certain global powers.

“Unfortunately, it has to be admitted that there is a degree of mistrust between the major powers in the Indian Ocean region that presently limits the degree to which effective and long-lasting multilateral cooperation can be achieved. India is the largest naval power in the region, and has a vital role to play with regard to the future of the Indian Ocean. The United States of America also has an extremely significant naval presence in this strategic region,” he pointed out.

Rajapaksa also said, “At the same time, it is apparent the influence of China in the region is also expanding rapidly. However, China has an industry intensive economy that requires oil imports amounting to more than 200 million tonnes every year.

Most of these oil imports are sourced from the Middle East, and then transported through the Indian Ocean to China. It is obvious that the safety and stability of the Indian Ocean is critical for China’s energy security, and its increasing interest, and increasing naval presence in this region is quite understandable,” he said.

According to the Defence Secretary, the assistance China has given to many countries for the development of deep water ports in the region has been an even more contentious issue. “Chinese investments or investment commitments for ports at Gwadar, Pakistan; Marao, Maldives; Hambantota, Sri Lanka; Chittagong, Bangladesh; and Sittwe, Burma have been termed the ‘String of Pearls’ and a great deal of speculation has surrounded these projects.”

However, he said, from the Chinese perspective, as its economy expands through its rapid development, it is only natural that its sphere of economic influence will expand. “China has long been an exponent of economic cooperation, and it has been a generous and steadfast friend to many countries in this region, including Sri Lanka,” he said.

The Defence Secretary added that nevertheless, the presence of Chinese-funded ports in critical positions throughout the ocean region can be perceived by India as an attempt to encircle it from the south. “It is very easy to understand this sensitivity. From Sri Lanka’s perspective, I wish to clarify that the Chinese investment in the Hambantota Port is a purely economic one. On average, more than 300 ships cross the Indian Ocean approximately 10 nautical miles south of Sri Lanka every day. The economic potential this presented was identified long ago, and there has been considerable debate about the best strategy to commercially exploit this potential for many decades,” he explained.

He added that several previous governments commissioned feasibility reports on establishing a deep water port in the south of Sri Lanka.

“It should also be noted that most of the largest companies setting up operations at the Hambantota Port are actually Indian companies. Placing the Hambantota Port within the paradigm of the String of Pearls theory is incorrect,” he pointed out.COURTESY:CEYLON TODAY