India and China Foreign Ministers Discuss South China
Sea Disputes
The
foreign ministers of India and China discussed their disputes over the South
China Sea on the sidelines of the Russia-India-China trilateral conference in
Moscow on Friday.
India’s
External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna and China’s Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi
emphasized that the two Asian giants need to resolve issues related to the
South China Sea, including a plan by India’s state-owned oil and Gas Company,
Oil and Natural Gas Corp., to drill for oil in the international waters.
India
has signed joint agreements with Vietnam on energy projects in the disputed
waters. According
to The Hindu, prior to the meeting, Krishna said that
trade along international waters should be open to all nations, and that
India’s oil exploration activities in the sea was a purely commercial
enterprise with no political meaning whatsoever.
China
has previously warned India away from exploration projects in the South China
Sea. Wu
Shicun, president of the government-run National Institute of South China, told
the Times of India newspaper: China will not stand any joint cooperation in our
claimed maritime areas.” Wu
added that India’s involvement in the sea would entail a lot of economic and
political risks. In
response, Ashwani Kumar, an Indian government minister, told the Times of India: South China Sea is the property
of the world. Nobody has a unilateral control over it and India is capable
enough of safeguarding its interests.
Similarly,
Krishna described the South China Sea as property of the world.
Explaining
India’s interest in the South China Sea, Amit Singh Research Associate, National Maritime
Foundation in New Delhi, wrote: India has a strong interest in keeping sea
lanes open in the [South China Sea]. The [South China Sea] is not only a
strategic maritime link between the Pacific and the Indian Oceans, but also a
vital gateway for shipping in East Asia.”
Singh
added: “Almost, 55 percent of India’s
trade with the Asia Pacific transits through the [South China Sea]. Apart from
helping secure energy supplies for countries like Japan and [South] Korea,
India has the unique distinction of shipping oil from Sakhalin [Russia] to
Mangalore [India] through sea routes of the region. Therefore, it is vital for
India to have access to the region. If China continues to assert dominance over
these waters, it will be difficult for India to continue with its activities
through this channel.”
China
is also engaged in contentious dispute with Vietnam and the Philippines and
other Asian nations over the South China Sea. The Times
of India reported that China directly controls seven of 52 islands in
Spratly Islands area of sea -- however, it claims ownership of 90 percent of
area. Currently, Vietnam has control over 40 of islands, Philippines controls
nine, Malaysia controls five and Taiwan control one island.
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