Page 21 - journal_2018_july_uploaded_2022_mar_16

Sri Lanka Navy Journal 8
ROLE OF OVERSEAS PRESENCE TOWARDS ACHIEVING REGIONAL /GLOBAL EMINENCE
INDIA, CHINA AND US IN THE INDIAN OCEAN REGION
A VIEW FROM THE PEARL OF THE INDIAN OCEAN
Captain (H) KAPSK Kariyapperuma,USP, psc, hdmc, MMS,MHS, BSc(DS), PG Dip in IR, AIMA

"Whoever controls the Indian Ocean, dominates Asia. This ocean is the key to the seven seas in
the twenty-first century, the destiny of the world will be decided in these waters."

Rear Admiral AlfredThayer Mahan, USN
The Indian Ocean Region (IOR)

he 21 century is regarded as the Asian Century. With China and India, the rising Asian
st
giants, rapidly expanding their economies and becoming increasingly dependent on
Tthe Indian Ocean for trade, the third largest ocean in the world has never been more
important than today. Spanning 20% of the water surface of the planet, the Indian Ocean
extends to an area of more than 73,556,000 square kilometres. On the North it is bordered by
the Indian sub-continent and extends all the way to the Antarctic in the South. On the West it
is bordered by East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula while to the East a number of countries
including Thailand, Indonesia, the Malay Peninsula and Australia demarcate the boundaries of
this vast expanse of water. Approximately 35.39% of the world population, more than one third
live in the 36 countries that encompass the Indian Ocean Region. It is estimated that more
than 60,000 ships and half of the world’s containerized cargo ply the waters of this ocean, 80%
of which is traded outside the region. All these figures underline the significance of the Indian
Ocean to the world.

The Asian Region has been dominating world news and events for decades. The rise
of China and India, their massive investments in Africa, the discovery of oil, natural gas and
minerals in the seabed of the Indian Ocean have put Asia in news headlines. Constant natural
disasters such as the 2004 Tsunami and the 8.9 magnitude earthquake in Japan in 2011 have
also attracted the attention
of the world. Terrorism in a
number of countries is also
significant. The 2008 and
2011 Mumbai blasts, suicide
attacks in Pakistan and the
assassination of its Prime
Minister Benazir Bhutto in
2007 caught global attention.
Drug trafficking, particularly
in Burma, Thailand and Laos
and human trafficking in Asia,
have all contributed adversely,
giving negative media coverage
for this Region.