External affairs committee on China and Pakistan
The Shashi Tharoor-led 31-member panel stressed that India's leadership role in the IOR is a 'natural and necessary extension of its geopolitical and economic interests.' 'The Indian Ocean is undeniably an integral part of India's global strategy, and it is in India's best interest to assert its role as a guardian of this vital maritime space,' it noted. However, the committee found India's approach to the region 'fragmented' due to overlapping strategic frameworks – SAGAR for the IOR and MAHASAGAR for the Global South. 'There appears to be considerable overlap between the objectives of SAGAR and MAHASAGAR, which could lead to confusion regarding their distinct and collective goals. In the Committee's view, a clear and unified vision will provide further strategic coherence and effectiveness to these initiatives,' it added.
Among the challenges outlined are China's deliberate expansion of its maritime footprint – from setting up military bases to pushing for strategic concessions from vulnerable states – and its use of infrastructure projects, survey vessels and port calls to tighten its grip in the IOR. The Ministry of External Affairs acknowledged that the Chinese People's Liberation Army (Navy) has already surpassed the US Navy to become the world's largest. 'With this capability augmentation, China has been consolidating its position in the IOR through frequent deployments of PLA (N) ships, submarines and aircraft. In the past decade, Chinese deployment in the IOR has seen a considerable rise. Chinese submarines are also known to have frequently been deployed in the OR since 2013,' the ministry stated.
It also highlighted that 20 Chinese quasi-military research vessels operated in the IOR for 862 days since 2024, the highest since 2020, while PLA (N) ships made 22 port calls in IOR countries in 2024 and conducted exercises with littoral states. The ministry warned of China's growing engagement in Africa, exploiting reduced European Union influence, and its outreach to politico-military leaders. Pakistan, meanwhile, is undergoing a major naval upgrade with warships and submarines from China and Turkey.
The government described China's Belt and Road Initiative and its 'String of Pearls' strategy as 'attempts to reshape the strategic geography by diluting India's maritime influence in the IOR and altering it in China's favour,' warning that such moves would be 'detrimental to India's economic growth, which is linked to the seas.'
This sharp assessment comes just weeks before Prime Minister Narendra Modi's expected visit to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit on August 31–September 1, where Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun expressed hopes the meeting would mark 'a new stage of high-quality development featuring greater solidarity, coordination, dynamism and productiveness.'
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