On July 12, the Philippines, the United States, Japan, and 11 other countries reaffirmed their “unwavering commitment” to a “free and open Indo-Pacific” through a joint statement commemorating the 10th anniversary of the South China Sea arbitration ruling. In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration, under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), ruled that Beijing’s maritime claims to economic and historical rights over the South China Sea had no legal basis. On July 11, the European Union released a statement reminding both Manila and Beijing – but more directed towards Beijing – that the ruling must be “respected and fully implemented”. In response, Beijing asked the US and others not to ‘fan the flames’, reiterated that the ruling was a “worthless piece of paper, that is illegal, null, and void”, and repeated that it would like to settle the dispute with the Philippines bilaterally. While the arbitral tribunal’s ruling does not directly reference India, New Delhi’s larger interests are intertwined with many nations at the receiving end of Beijing’s high-handedness in the South China Sea and the Indo-Pacific Region.

The joint statement and EU’s stance point to wide international support against China’s unilateral actions in the region. Control over the South China Sea will enable power projection across the Indo-Pacific. Over the years, China has gotten into multiple maritime disputes with the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei. Heightening tensions, on July 6, it fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) from a nuclear-powered submarine in the South China Sea, inviting criticism by many nations over the threat to regional stability. New Delhi must take note of Beijing’s ICBM test and reflect on what it needs to do to close the operational and strategic gap this opens. This has the potential to heighten competition in the Indian Ocean Region and reshape the nuclear balance in the Indo-Pacific.

The reaction to the missile test and the 10th anniversary statements, when read together, show that an increasingly aggressive Beijing is inadvertently bringing other nations in the region together. As China was testing its nuclear capabilities, Australia and Fiji were signing a defence treaty. Recently, New Delhi enhanced its defence cooperation with Tokyo, Jakarta, Manila, and Hanoi. India must focus on improving defence, trade, and diplomatic ties with Southeast Asian and Oceanic nations intimidated by a hostile China. New Delhi’s call for freedom of navigation in the South China Sea and its backing of the 2016 ruling are steps in that direction. (Source: DH)