U.S. Central Command Area of Responsibility | Source: U.S. CENTCOM
One of the takeaways from the joint statement issued at the conclusion of the inaugural 2+2 dialogue of defence and foreign ministers between the U.S. and India is the decision taken by the two countries to foster engagement between the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) and the Indian armed forces.
The joint statement said, “The Ministers reviewed the recent growth of bilateral engagements in support of maritime security and maritime domain awareness and committed to expand cooperation. Toward that end, the Ministers committed to start exchanges between the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) and the Indian Navy, underscoring the importance of deepening their maritime cooperation in the western Indian Ocean.” NAVCENT is part of CENTCOM and, both, the NAVCENT and the U.S. Fifth Fleet are headquartered in Manama, Bahrain with a common commander.
The idea of exchanging and cross-posting officers between the Indian armed forces and CENTCOM has been simmering for many years.
The division of areas of responsibility between the U.S. CENTCOM and the Indo-PACOM (Indo-Pacific Command) is demarcated, quite literally, by the Line of Control (LoC) and the international border between India and Pakistan.
The result is that there is limited engagement between the Indian armed forces with CENTCOM, which has responsibility for the Arabian Sea, the Middle East and Central Asia – regions in which India has significant national security interests.
Vice Admiral Shekhar Sinha (retired), former commander of India’s western navy, explained, “When we started doing Malabar, while we had an institutional mechanism to interact with the Pacific Command – what is now known as the Indo-Pacific Command – our area which is on the boil is in the western Indian Ocean, which is the Arabian Sea. So we always raised this issue that your Central Command must have a mechanism – institutionalized mechanism to interact with the Western Naval Command. And I’m glad that this has happened – it has taken a long time.”
The Indian Navy and Indian Air Force have carried out large-scale operations in the past – most notably the evacuation of civilians from Lebanon and Yemen. India also has significant national security interests in supporting the government of Afghanistan – a country with a significant presence of U.S coalition troops under CENTCOM, which is also responsible for U.S. military engagement with Pakistan.
This is not to say there has been no engagement at all. The Indian Navy has coordinated action against piracy in the Arabian Sea with U.S. naval forces and the U.S.-led Combined Task Force 151 (CTF-151).
“What happens is – all the ships that move in and out of the Arabian Sea – out of the two gulfs – this is going to be important to get that Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA). They have good MDA because they have the CTF 150, CTF 158 – so they are operating more because of anti-piracy or anti-terrorism type of duties,” explained Admiral Sinha, adding, “Our ships are also floating around there in the gulfs and the Arabian Sea, which is our area of responsibility. So one was always sort of unfamiliar with what is going on till you have found out for yourself.”
According to navy sources, the modalities for posting personnel are being worked out.
Admiral Sinha outlines the task for these personnel, saying, “They have given a slot to an Indian Navy liaison officer so that he can actually be posted there and he can have the full picture of the MDA – whatever is important to the Indian Navy. That data could be exchanged because there is some data on maritime vessels movement exchanged as well, so that will happen.”
Increasingly, the presence of surface/sub-surface naval forces and the ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ of the People’s Republic of China in the western Indian Ocean, along with Chinese loan-sharking of countries in the region (in the area of responsibility of the U.S. CENTCOM) are also issues of concern for both countries.
“China is of great interest to the U.S. and to pursue its interests it would like to have India onboard, because India is sitting right in the middle of the Indian Ocean. Our common interest is to counter China, to counter terrorism. There is also drugs smuggling, human trafficking and piracy, on which we have convergent interests.
The decision to exchange personnel is a recognition of these interests and a practical first step towards a solution to this dilemma. “The next step should be the complete exchange of the Maritime Domain Awareness picture,” prescribes Admiral Sinha.
