NEW DELHI: The Indian Navy is ensuring that no nation “suppresses another” in Indo-Pacific or “endangers its strategic autonomy” on the basis of economic strength or military power, defence minister Rajnath Singh said on Friday, in a clear reference to China’s continuing attempts to expand its strategic footprint in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
“Securing free navigation, a rules-based world order, anti-piracy and peace and stability in the IOR are our biggest objectives.The Navy is playing a crucial role in fulfilling them. India, with its increasing power, is committed to making the region as well as the entire world peaceful and prosperous,” Singh said, reviewing naval operational readiness on the eastern seaboard during a ‘day at sea’ off Vizag.
Singh, who was accompanied by Navy chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi and Eastern Naval Command chief Vice Admiral Rajesh Pendharkar, said govt’s focus was on bolstering security both along the land borders, including the northern one with China, as well as the maritime ones.
This focus on land borders and maritime security has a broader vision – to bind the northern and southern parts of the nation in one thread, he said.
“Securing free navigation, a rules-based world order, anti-piracy and peace and stability in the IOR are our biggest objectives.The Navy is playing a crucial role in fulfilling them. India, with its increasing power, is committed to making the region as well as the entire world peaceful and prosperous,” Singh said, reviewing naval operational readiness on the eastern seaboard during a ‘day at sea’ off Vizag.
Singh, who was accompanied by Navy chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi and Eastern Naval Command chief Vice Admiral Rajesh Pendharkar, said govt’s focus was on bolstering security both along the land borders, including the northern one with China, as well as the maritime ones.
This focus on land borders and maritime security has a broader vision – to bind the northern and southern parts of the nation in one thread, he said.
With the country’s growing industrial infrastructure, including the capabilities of shipyards, govt will work to further strengthen maritime security and make the presence of India’s naval power in the IOR more robust. “It is a matter of pride that our Navy is ensuring safe trade and promoting peace and prosperity in IOR,” he added.