The Chinese Navy confronted an Indian naval ship in the South China Sea in July, demanding to know why the Indian vessel was in Chinese territory despite the incident appearing to take place in what are widely regarded as international waters, reports today are suggesting.
The face-off, which took place on July 22, is expected to heighten tensions in the often awkward relationship between Delhi and Beijing.
According to reports, the amphibious assault vessel INS Airavat was radioed by an unidentified Chinese naval vessel as it left Vietnamese waters. CNN-IBN reports that the Airavat was 45 nautical miles from Vietnam’s coast and heading towards the port of Haiphaong. ‘An unidentified caller who claimed to be from the Chinese Navy, but who was speaking in English, told INS Airavat that the Indian ship was entering Chinese waters and they must leave,’ according to IBN.
China has been engaged in a sometimes intense and long-running row with its Southeast Asian neighbours about ownership of the South China Sea, with China’s expansive claims disputed most notably by Vietnam and the Philippines. Indeed, Vietnam raised the stakes in June, calling on the United States and others to step in and help find some kind of resolution after a number of confrontations. But this may be the first time that China has directly challenged India.
India’s External Affairs Ministry, which normally remains tight-lipped over reported spats with China, moved to play down the incident, saying that the Airavat was in international waters, while denying that a confrontation took place.
The ministry statement said: ‘The Indian Naval vessel, INS Airavat, paid a friendly visit to Vietnam between July 19 to 28, 2011. On July 22, INS Airavat sailed from the Vietnamese port of Nha Trang towards Haiphaong, where it was to make a port call. At a distance of 45 nautical miles from the Vietnamese coast in the South China Sea, it was contacted on an open radio channel by a caller identifying himself as the “Chinese Navy” stating that “you are entering Chinese waters.” No ship or aircraft was visible from INS Airavat, which proceeded on her onward journey as scheduled. There was no confrontation involving the INS Airavat.’
Still, news of the incident will be an unwelcome development for an Indian government currently distracted by domestic strife, with the Manmohan Singh embroiled in what seems like an endless stream of corruption scandals and periodic stand-offs with civil society, notably those led by activist Anna Hazare.
The question for the Singh government is how to respond to an increasingly assertive China. This wouldn’t be the first time that tensions have flared in the past couple of years and comes as India has announced plans for the formation of a new strike corps aimed specifically at being able to hit targets inside China in the event of conflict breaking out.
The formation of the new strike corps has been under consideration for the last two years, but has only now been confirmed. According to Trefor Moss, writing here last week, it’s reported that it will focus on the eastern end of the contested border to bolster India’s defence of Arunachal Pradesh (what China calls Southern Tibet), as do the two new mountain divisions numbering 35,000 troops that the Indian Army has already raised. These are based in Nagaland and Assam, just south of the disputed province. However, the strike corps will consist of a further 40,000 troops, and its presence will significantly alter the Himalayan dynamic, with Indian forces in the region previously adopting a more defensive posture.
The July incident, meanwhile, raises key questions about the extent to which China will push its claims in the South China Sea. The United States has indicated that it supports freedom of navigation in the region, and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton angered Beijing last summer with her remarks at an ASEAN meet in Hanoi that the peace and freedom of navigation in the South China Sea is in the US national interest.
Certainly it seems to be a view echoed by India. The External Affairs Ministry statement on the July incident also carried a key observation: ‘India supports freedom of navigation in international waters, including in the South China Sea, and the right of passage in accordance with accepted principles of international law. These principles should be respected by all.’
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Samurai_aka_Keisuki Nomura
China is getting more aggressive daily and is not willing to respect its neighbouring countries rights and freedom and is playing like a dictator that owns the power of all asia.
China is not ready to accept the international sea rights or freedom and is challenging every country their navigational freedom that is passing through South China Sea to reach far east places.
China has 1 or more dispute with every country in South east asia.
I studied about India and China and found alarming facts that,
India is being surrounded by china in every corner. Chinese has already started big projects, infra in Myanmar, Nepal, Srilanka and Pakistan. Particularly Srilanka has changed to a complete chinese state with PLA engineers building radars, ports, hospitals, roads etc.
Chinese are aggressively building vast roads, rail, airbases close to Tibet border with India. PLA engineers are also doing hard work in Pak Occupied Kashmir (PoK). Chinese is giving arms, huge nuke cooperation to Pak in view of India.
“—>A thing to note: China recently started some exploration in Indian ocean”
India should choose a better asia centric policy with other east countries in view of India. Other east countries should assist India to control china.
—->The comedy lies in fact that “”"if India tells china and whole world that Indian ocean, Bay of Bengal and half of Arabian Sea is the sole property of India and noone will be allowed to enter these waters, then what china and rest of world countries will do?????.
If every country in world start to claim like china, how will china themselves travel to other places?.
China is exactly doing the same now with South China Sea. If a sea gets name regarding the country close to it, how can the country say whole sea is theirs??.
China should respect international sea lane and everyone’s right to travel and navigation.
Murray
China has a large number of aircrafts compared to any asian country period.They have a newly acquired aircraft carrier from Ukarine. Now they want to intimidate India for lending support to Vietnam and leaning with the Americans for policing the South China Sea waters. They want to reward India for rescuing 20 Chinese sailors from Somali pirates in May this year and this is the way of PRC showing gratitude. Chinese are no fools-their Airforce is filled to a large extent with J series aircraft which are meant to boost numbers but not really to make an impact. They are vintage practically sitting targets for Indian Airforce. Chinese know that Indian pilots are the best in Asia and one of the cream of the crop in air combat in the world with real war experience. Chinese aircraft carrier was not completed by the Russians but merely the skeleton was sold so they don’t have any suitable planes for the aircraft BUT merely it is for helicopters.They forgot or the Russians refused to sell the complementing fighter jets with it.Indian Airforce is smaller but LETHAL.In case of war Chinese leadership are no idiots because Indians can cut of the supply lines in the Indian Ocean and China don’t stand a prayer as they don’t really have a blue water Navy but only in the process of building it anything they do against India will be suicidal. In my personal opinion the incident could have been the result of one renegade chinese commander taking matters into his own hands.
Sam
Clearly the Chinese were afraid to show their face like real warriors and chose to do this as a voice on the radio so they could backpedal double quick when the world reacted with appropriate revulsion. Now their apologists are trying to spin the story as best they can.’Nuff said.
Jerry Z
Hats off to Sharma for creating the world’s most pathetic naval square off. Of course who is going read this if the author didn’t blow this thing into epic proportion. This is so called the modern journalism, fake to the core. The 2nd half of the article aren’t even about the incident as the author felt the need to supply off topic materials to support his exaggeration.
LMAO calling China gangster. All these small incidents happen on the Chinese border, not 3000 miles away on some other country’s door step. “Leonard R.” “duke chan” are the typical fear and war monger the author of this article is very pleased to see.
nirvana
@Leonard R.
It is a pity that you went too fast. I was waiting for the time when they do not have any argument left than the one of the name, to point out that this is not a proof of property.
I feel very comfortable with the term “South China Sea”. It would be interesting to dig a little bit and find out who named this sea the “South China Sea”. Any historians out there?
ozivan
@Leonard R. Another helpful hint. Maybe you should consider naming it ” American Far West Seas ” by virtue of the fact that the US is the strongest naval power there, and base on Leonard R’s logic.
Leonard R.
Helpful hint DIPLOMAT, stop calling it the ‘South China Sea’.The West Philippines Sea or East Sea are the names two nations with better claims than China are using for that stretch of ocean.
No nation needs Hu Jintao’s permission to sail there. India needs to push back. So does America.
anubhav dutta
Chinese think that they could match the U.S capabilities. First they must think thrice that India is growing as superpower and they will find it difficult to win against Indian this time as they are preparing well.Note: Chinese navy don’t have an aircraft carrier.
ozivan
@Peter. China is the party that needs to understand it is imperiling the source of its current prosperity.
Quite true. If China don’t want to learn good lessons, it will go down the path that the US & Japan have done.
aseannow
Oops, time has come. India will learn that once China takes over South China Sea, the Indian Ocean will be China’s too. If you live in the Southeast Asia you will feel the fear. Chinese workers are everywhere. They attack local communities. They destroy environment and local cultures. It is ignorant to believe that China will bring peace and prosperity to the world.
Peter
@ Ozivan:
Ever heard the expression, “Giving away the store?” Duke Chan is 100% correct. One day, we may finally realize that our cheap toys came at a very high price indeed. China is the party that needs to understand it is imperiling the source of its current prosperity. War is bad for business, especially when China would lose.
Anonymous
@ Frank:
“Anybody can yell at Indians on VHF channel 16. Only Indians think that was real Chinese Navy calling.”
And it’s even easier to post anonymously on a news blog. Only a PRC chauvinist would think your real name is “Frank.” Why don’t you go hack into the UN or something? You’re wasting your time here.
ozivan
!! ?? Do not buy cheap stuffs made in China, that is the shortest way to bring down this gangster.
That’s the dumbest thing to do…dude.
Ever heard of the saying : Cutting your nose to spite your face ?
ozivan
Do not buy cheap stuffs made in China, that is the shortest way to bring down this gangster.
That’s the dumbest thing to do…dude.
Ever heard of the saying : Cutting your nose to spite your face ?
ozivan
@Kom. Let’s make and keep peace as best as we can. Shall we?
I ozivan agree with Kom, and thank you.
@Franklin Buo. Please don’t disturb the peace.
Varun has said : This is no big deal. Big countries have silly standoffs all the time, today we learned something.
And India’s External Affairs Ministry has stated these, and the author have also stated the same above :
India’s External Affairs Ministry, which normally remains tight-lipped over reported spats with China, moved to play down the incident, saying that the Airavat was in international waters, while denying that a confrontation took place.
Varun
This is no big deal.
Big countries have silly standoffs all the time, today we learned something.
Kom
@ Franklin Buo…, it would be wiser to be humble. I love Chinese people and China. But if China should use her immense military power to pursue such aggressive actions, it would only shorten China’s reign as a major world power…
Let’s make and keep peace as best as we can. Shall we?
Observer
We can see it now, a new movie coming soon.
Pirates of the South China Sea: Chinese Navy.
AM
I believe that a test of either India’s or China’s defenses wouldn’t be in the best interest of either country or the entire world.
A confrontation between two nuclear states is a ridiculously stupid thing to do. Especially considering that in that event, it would draw every country leading to World War.
And if China really did want to push to war, the effects on its people would be even worse simply because the rest of the world is already too wary of China.
Be smart and don’t do stupid shit like trying to force India into war.
Jay Chong
@John Chan:
“1. INS Airavat’s navigation equipment must be so inaccurate or its crews were so incompetent that it has to be reminded by the Chinese Navy that it “was entering Chinese waters and they must leave.””
– It wasn’t the equipment. It was the Chinese navy that forgot they were in Vietnamese waters and they must leave…
“2. “No ship or aircraft was visible from INS Airavat” means Chinese monitoring system is so good that INS Airavat did not know it was being watched. It is similar to the rumours saying that the Vietnamese jet fighters were kept on being locked by J-10. Maybe those rumours are real.”
– Dream on! The J-10 is piece of work, which even the Chinese pilots refused to fly unless the plane is equipped with a Russian-made engine. Your attempt to paint weapons in the Chinese arsenal as something “dangerous” is laughable at best.
“3. China also supports freedom of navigation in international waters, would it be that INS Airavat was testing Chinese defense like the American P-3, U-2, etc. and got caught?”
– If it was really international waters then why was there confrontation? That was Vietnamese water, which the Chinese navy infringed and pretended it was theirs. Wait! Everytime the PLAN enters Vietnamese waters and get caught, they would claim they were in… international waters.
nirvana
@John Chan,
Interesting indeed. Have you thought that it is a rumour spread here so that a person very informed of the PLAN capabilities reveals some top secrets?
Deng Xiaoping must be admonishing: “Naughty boy. You forgot my teaching! Bide our time, conceal our capabilities until we are ready to act”.
Just to reassure you: I was joking. You knew nothing (at least so I hope for you, unless you are not blogging from mainland China).
King Louie
To John Chan.
1. Entering Chinese water – The Chinese navy’s translated GPS may says whole South China Sea as our sole property. Even in Arabian Sea it may say “we are in our Chinese backyard”. Probably check the basic coordinates and how effective your translations are!
2. A Chinese fishing PLAN trawler not visible, even on a binocular?? Possible.
3. I agree with that..
Your Usual Rumor Media
An encounter that the Indian navy says never occurs. Of course, your usual Japanese rumor mongering again. How wonderful that the Dai-Nippon Navy was also an illusion served up by the war criminals in the Yakasone shrine that every Japanese prime minister bow to. Bonsai!
John Chan
Some interesting points are in the article.
1. INS Airavat’s navigation equipment must be so inaccurate or its crews were so incompetent that it has to be reminded by the Chinese Navy that it “was entering Chinese waters and they must leave.”
2. “No ship or aircraft was visible from INS Airavat” means Chinese monitoring system is so good that INS Airavat did not know it was being watched. It is similar to the rumours saying that the Vietnamese jet fighters were kept on being locked by J-10. Maybe those rumours are real.
3. China also supports freedom of navigation in international waters, would it be that INS Airavat was testing Chinese defense like the American P-3, U-2, etc. and got caught?
Frank
Anybody can yell at Indians on VHF channel 16.
Only Indians think that was real Chinese Navy calling.
thedude
“it was contacted on an open radio channel by a caller identifying himself as the “Chinese Navy” stating that “you are entering Chinese waters.” No ship or aircraft was visible from INS Airavat, which proceeded on her onward journey as scheduled.”
Did anyone think that maybe this was a prank? Unidentified radio call simply stating it is the “Chinese Navy”. Right.
Franklin Buo
India will soon learn true power of China homeland. Once China grow stronger even US will fear us. We must remain together to destroy imperialist pigs. China will be forever!
duke chan
Can you imagine what will happen to the world when China becomes a super power?
The Chinese acts like gangsters. The Chinese must be contained. Do not buy cheap stuffs made in China, that is the shortest way to bring down this gangster