23 July 2021, NIICE Commentary 7123
Aditi Basu
In the 21st century, there has been a transitional shift in global politics and economics. As India works upon its Act East policy, the Bay of Bengal has become, of late, a key region possessing immense strategic manoeuvres. It is regarded by many as India’s “stepping stone” in the Indo-Pacific dispute. The importance of India as a key player in the Bay of Bengal region in the COVID-19 era, its interests, compulsion and imperatives cannot be ignored. The Bay of Bengal as a new avenue for development and confrontation is changing the dynamics of Indian foreign policy regarding Bay of Bengal in the Indo-Pacific Region. One can rightly see the ways in which India can collaborate with the Southeast Asian countries to ensure stability and security in the Bay through a rule-based order for strengthening connectivity in the Indo-Pacific Region.
The Bay of Bengal is an extension of the Indian Ocean in the North East lying to the south of Bangladesh. It shares its borders with India in the west, Sri Lanka to South West and Burma in the Southeast. It is the world’s largest bay and houses immense quantities of natural resources, fishing stocks, reserves of gas and other sea bed minerals. It also links the Indian and Pacific Ocean by a funnel-like structure which is of immense strategic importance for China, Japan and most East and Southeast Asian states. These countries get access to the crucial energy resources of Gulf and Africa through the Bay of Bengal. The Bay of Bengal regained its geo-politico-economic importance with the economic reforms of 1990s in India and South Asia. India looks forward to focus on the bay so as to connect with the Southeast Asian markets which is an integral part of its “Act East” policy. With the growing Chinese hegemony in the Indian Ocean, South China Sea and the Indo-Pacific Region by its Belt and Road Initiative, New Delhi is keen to accelerate a parallel East-West connectivity route across the Bay of Bengal.
Strategic Importance of Bay of Bengal to India
Bay of Bengal has always been an area of strategic importance since ancient times. It has had a tremendous impact on the geography, climate and culture on the surrounding regions. Monsoon used to be the guiding force for trade in the Bay of Bengal and that is one of the reasons why monsoons were called trade winds. It provided for bumper agricultural production, thus providing a trade surplus. In modern times, it possesses good economic prospects for India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, giving them access to entire Asia. It connects the Pacific and Indian ocean regions economically. China has cast its greedy eyes on the Bay of Bengal because it wants to merge this region with the South China Sea as a feature of its “Look South” strategy and develop economic corridors. Japan has also planned to use this region as an important trade route linking southern India, Bangladesh and Myanmar to the South China Sea via the Indochina. The Bay of Bengal also contains huge tracts of natural gas reserves. Apart from this, the oil and gas supplies from the Persian Gulf are transported to the entire Eastern Asia through this region. Raw materials like iron ore, coal, oil and natural gas from Africa are transported to China through this region. Therefore, it can be said that there is a “scramble” for the Bay of Bengal amongst India, China and Japan.
India in the Bay of Bengal and its Act East Policy
India is considered to be the principal guarantor of security in the Bay of Bengal region. She is developing its diplomatic strategy in South Asia by means of military cooperation with East Asian countries like Myanmar to strengthen its Act East policy. Since Myanmar has refrained itself from becoming too dependent on Chinese capital and trade, there are increased chances of Indian trade with Myanmar. India has also sought for the active participation of the QUAD countries for combating the growth of Chinese imperialism in the Bay of Bengal region. India has also encouraged Japanese trade in Bangladesh, Myanmar and Sri Lanka to provide an alternative to Chinese projects. This could be more transparent and economically feasible as compared to the Chinese investments. India has also conducted its naval exercise named Malabar Exercise in the Bay of Bengal region in 2020 which has brought it closer to the US and Japan who have also deployed their warships. In COVID-19 era, India has realised that it needs to focus on its maritime interests in the Indian Ocean as well as the Bay of Bengal because situation demands it.
New employment prospects of Indian Northeast states can be found in the Bay of Bengal. At the Shangri La Dialogue of 2018, the SAGAR (Security and Growth for all in the Region) Initiative was conceived by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to connect the Indian eastern and north-eastern states with the neighbouring eastern countries as a feature of India’s Act East policy. The SAGAR initiative would give an impetus to the economic growth of the ASEAN countries, thereby, suiting themselves to counter the increasing influence of China in the Indian Ocean. The Bay of Bengal bridges the gap between India and East Asian countries by improving connectivity through numerous multimodal projects.
Countering China in the Bay of Bengal
As China shifts its attention towards the oceans and the seas surrounding it, one finds Chinese hegemony growing in the Indian neighbourhood. It uses non-military platforms as to avoid a direct confrontation with India. China has deployed many civilian research and survey vessels in India’s neighbourhood but has always swiftly avoided penetrating into Indian islands. China has been respectful in not hampering Indian interests in the Bay of Bengal and has never breached Indian sovereignty in the regional sea lanes. Fewer Chinese submarines have been spotted near the Andaman and Nicobar Islands which indicate that China doesn’t want India to view it as an aggressor in Indian neighbourhood. China wants to use the Indian ocean and the Bay of Bengal as a “grand bargain” with India so that neither of them are affected in maritime trade and economic activities, with both of them maintaining their concerned spheres of dominance backed by economic motives.
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the dynamics of Geopolitics especially in case of India. It has affected world trade and movement of people throughout the world. However, the Indo-Pacific Region cannot be completely ignored whenever we discuss about the Indian role in Bay of Bengal. The member countries of BIMSTEC have taken initiatives to work together collectively and have also included the role of major stakeholders like the Asian Development Bank without whom their targets cannot be fulfilled. Countries like India, Bangladesh and Thailand have made agreements amongst themselves under India’s Act East Initiative but their connectivity projects have been delayed due to some domestic and international issues. Strategic manoeuvres in the Bay of Bengal form the foundation stone of developments in the Indo-Pacific Region. Countries are now thinking upon working towards collective accelerated growth by the efficient utilisation of regional resources and geographical features. A kind of multilateralism has emerged in the Bay of Bengal region in the spheres of international tourism, academic student-exchange programmes, cross border public health initiatives and so on. Therefore, seeing the current situation, it would be correct to say that the Bay of Bengal, which serves as a nexus between the Indian and Pacific Ocean, acts as a confluence of Indian, Chinese and East Asian strategic interests.
