Context: At a time when China’s pre-meditated military moves along our northern boundary are drawing the nation’s attention, it is important that we don’t lose sight of our surrounding seas.
Background

• Laws for seas:India has legislation that requires foreign marine scientific vessels to seek licence prior to undertaking activities in Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and Continental Shelf (CS).
• Our navy forbade Chinese maritime research and survey vessels that entered our EEZ and CS without our prior consent in 2018 and 2019.
• Claims of Chinese: They are serving the interests of global scientific research but it is well-known that China uses civilian research vessels to gather crucial oceanographic data for military purposes.
• The Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (CSIS) survey shows that China deployed 25 maritime survey missions in the Indo-Pacific between April 2019 and March 2020. This is only marginally less than the 27 missions mounted by the next six countries taken cumulatively.

Global concerns about the Chinese vessels

• China has mounted at least six survey missions covering the waters between Indonesia and Sri Lanka in 2019-2020. For example- the Australians voiced concern over the activities of the Chinese vessel in international waters between the Australian mainland and Christmas Island.
• Military expansion overseas: Critics argue that China follows a “pattern of denial and obfuscation” in its military expansion overseas. For example- Beijing initially denied its intention to militarise the Spratly Islands but eventually acknowledged that they serve a military purpose.
• Intelligence gathering: It is believed that PLA Navy (PLAN) intelligence-gathering ships have sailed our coastline to gather information on naval facilities and ships.
• China may well take the position that their activities are legitimate under international law.

Laws regarding seas:

• The Law of the Sea Convention says that military vessels have “right to innocent passage” to pass through the territorial sea of a coastal state without entering internal waters till they are not against the peace, good order and security of the coastal state.

Different interpretations of laws on the question of scientific surveys in the EEZ of coastal states:

• For example- the US maintains that hydrographical surveys without prior notice or consent are lawful in line with centuries of state practice, customary and international laws.
• The collection of vital hydrographical data is critical to China’s understanding of the sub-surface environment.

China could step up their efforts to significantly improved data in the seas between the Malacca Straits and Djibouti through:

• By sending survey vessel without our permission into our EEZ: For example in May, the Chinese survey vessel accompanied by two Chinese coast guard ships and several fishing vessels entered the Malaysian EEZ in the South China Sea for over a month despite Malaysian protests.
• By deploying unmanned underwater drones in our EEZ: While the mother vessel remains just outside the EEZ. A recent Forbes report claims that Sea-Wing underwater and unmanned drones were launched in mid-December 2019.
• Sailing PLAN intelligence-gathering ships: Either along our coasts or in the waters off our island territories on grounds that this is “innocent passage” by naval vessels permissible under the laws.
• Though we have the necessary capacity to monitor and interdict survey vessels well before they enter our EEZ, we need a comprehensive strategy to tackle future challenges.

Need of Comprehensive Underwater Domain Awareness (UDA) strategy

• Coordination: Between our national security agencies, the navy and the government departments responsible for the marine environment and disaster management.
• Collaboration: With like-minded countries who share our concerns. Such cooperation includes deepening of real-time information exchange, co-development and deployment of UDA monitoring devices and closer coordination in the patrolling of sea lanes to ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific.

Road Ahead

• The creation of Maritime Domain Awareness and especially Underwater Domain Awareness (UDA) capabilities and technology, both domestically and with like-minded partners, should be given the highest priority in order to counter future Chinese intrusion in India’s Coastal Waters.
• The policymakers need to look at India’s position in the 21st century from a very different prism and navigate through the current realities with respect to Underwater Domain Awareness (UDA).
• India is well-poised in the Indian Ocean Region to take a leadership role because of its strategic location, but this cannot happen unless it upgrades its acoustic infrastructure.
• India’s ambitions to expand its footprint in the maritime domain both for inland waterways development as well as outward thrust with initiatives such as Sagarmala and Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR) and the national Maritime Agenda-2020 but it is imperative to develop internal UDA capacities and capabilities