International Relations, UPSC
Q.20. Discuss the geopolitical and geostrategic importance of Maldives for India with a focus on global trade and energy flows. Further also discuss how this relationship affects India’s maritime security and regional stability amidst international competition? [UPSC 2024 GS P-2]
The Maldives holds significant geopolitical and geostrategic importance for India, primarily due to its location in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), its proximity to major global sea lanes, and its role in regional security and stability. As a key maritime neighbor, the Maldives plays a pivotal role in India’s strategy to secure its maritime interests, maintain regional stability, and counter growing international competition, particularly from China.
Geopolitical and Geostrategic Importance of the Maldives for India:
- Proximity to Key Shipping Lanes:
- The Maldives is located near vital sea lanes in the Indian Ocean, through which a significant portion of global trade and energy flows. Approximately 80% of global oil shipments pass through the Indian Ocean, including those from the Middle East to Asia. These sea lanes are crucial for India’s energy security as the country imports the majority of its oil via the Indian Ocean.
- The One and a Half Degree Channel and Eight Degree Channel, close to the Maldives, are essential choke points for maritime traffic, linking the Strait of Hormuz, the Gulf of Aden, and the Strait of Malacca. Control over or influence in the Maldives gives India strategic leverage in safeguarding these routes, critical for both global trade and energy supply chains.
- Countering Chinese Influence:
- The growing presence of China in the Indian Ocean under its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and its String of Pearls strategy has heightened geopolitical tensions. China’s investments in maritime infrastructure, such as ports in Gwadar (Pakistan), Hambantota (Sri Lanka), and potential future bases in the Maldives, threaten to encircle India and challenge its dominance in the region.
- India’s strategic partnership with the Maldives is critical for countering Chinese influence and ensuring that Chinese military or economic interests do not compromise India’s security. The India-Maldives Defense Cooperation Agreement aims to enhance India’s presence and influence in Maldivian waters, ensuring that Chinese ambitions do not lead to the establishment of Chinese naval bases near India’s maritime boundaries.
- Maritime Security:
- The Maldives sits at a strategic position in the heart of the Indian Ocean, making it crucial for India’s maritime security. Any instability or external influence in the Maldives could threaten India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), vital shipping lanes, and security interests in the region.
- Piracy, drug trafficking, and illegal fishing are other concerns in the Indian Ocean, and the Maldives plays a critical role in India’s maritime surveillance efforts. India has provided the Maldives with patrol vessels, coastal radar systems, and intelligence-sharing mechanisms to enhance maritime security.
- Indian Ocean Naval Strategy:
- India views the Indian Ocean as its strategic backyard and has traditionally seen itself as the net security provider in the region. The Maldives, located near India’s southern tip, is essential to India’s naval strategy. India’s Project Mausam, aimed at reviving ancient maritime routes and cultural ties across the Indian Ocean, underscores the importance of the Maldives in ensuring the region’s security and stability.
- India’s naval bases and maritime cooperation with the Maldives help India maintain a dominant presence in the Indian Ocean, monitor the movement of foreign naval vessels, and ensure its own freedom of navigation in international waters.
- Energy Flows:
- Given that a large portion of India’s energy imports passes through the Indian Ocean, ensuring the safety and security of these maritime routes is paramount. The Maldives’ proximity to these energy flows means that India must maintain stable relations with the country to prevent external powers from gaining control over or influencing these critical shipping lanes.
- The Blue Economy initiative, which promotes the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, is also vital for both India and the Maldives. Through cooperation in areas like fisheries, renewable energy, and maritime resources, India ensures that the economic opportunities in the region are not dominated by external powers.
Impact on India’s Maritime Security and Regional Stability:
- Regional Stability and Security Architecture:
- Stability in the Maldives directly impacts the broader security environment of the Indian Ocean region. Political instability or regime changes in the Maldives, as seen in recent years, can open the door to external interference, particularly from China or radical elements, which could threaten regional security.
- India has played a key role in ensuring political stability in the Maldives through diplomatic interventions, economic support, and security cooperation. The Maldives is part of India’s Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR) initiative, aimed at enhancing maritime security in the Indian Ocean by building security partnerships with littoral states.
- India’s Neighborhood First Policy prioritizes relations with the Maldives to ensure that the region remains free from external influence, promoting peace and stability.
- Counterterrorism and Anti-Piracy Efforts:
- The Maldives’ location makes it a strategic partner for India in combatting terrorism and piracy in the Indian Ocean. The rise of radicalization and Islamist extremism in the Maldives is a concern for India, given its close proximity and the potential for cross-border terrorism.
- India has extended assistance in capacity-building, training Maldivian defense forces, and improving the country’s counterterrorism capabilities. The Indian Navy and the Coast Guard also collaborate with their Maldivian counterparts on anti-piracy operations, safeguarding the maritime domain.
- Geopolitical Competition with China:
- As China’s influence in the Maldives grows, India’s relationship with the Maldives becomes a critical counterbalance to prevent Chinese encirclement in the Indian Ocean. China’s investments in Maldivian infrastructure projects, such as the China-Maldives Friendship Bridge and other development projects, raise concerns in New Delhi about the potential for Chinese military presence in the future.
- To maintain its influence, India has ramped up diplomatic and economic engagement with the Maldives, including aid packages, loans, and infrastructure development. The construction of the Greater Male Connectivity Project (funded by India) is a prime example of India’s efforts to counter China’s influence by enhancing regional connectivity and stability.
- Quad and Other Strategic Groupings:
- India’s maritime security in the region, including its relationship with the Maldives, is also influenced by its role in strategic alliances such as the Quad (India, the United States, Japan, and Australia). Through such alliances, India seeks to strengthen its position in the Indo-Pacific, where the Maldives plays a key role as a central point in the Indian Ocean.
- The Quad’s focus on freedom of navigation, maritime security, and ensuring a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific complements India’s efforts to maintain stability in its immediate neighborhood, including the Maldives.
Conclusion:
The Maldives is of immense geopolitical and geostrategic importance to India due to its location near vital global trade routes, its influence on energy flows, and its role in maritime security. As international competition in the Indian Ocean intensifies, especially with China’s growing presence, India’s relationship with the Maldives is critical for safeguarding its interests in the region. This partnership is central not only to India’s maritime security strategy but also to maintaining peace and stability in the broader Indian Ocean Region, amidst the challenges posed by geopolitical rivalries and security threats.
