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What India's Gift Of A Missile Corvette to Vietnam Means To Region's Geopolitics

© Photo : PIB IndiaINS Kirpan will be handed over to Vietnam People’s Navy post arrival in Vietnam
INS Kirpan will be handed over to Vietnam People’s Navy post arrival in Vietnam - Sputnik India, 1920, 29.06.2023
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New Delhi and Hanoi have witnessed an improvement in relations, including in the defence sector, with both nations having apprehensions about China's maritime clout in the region.
In what is being viewed as a major shift in New Delhi's maritime strategy, India on Wednesday gave an active Navy vessel, a missile corvette INS Kirpan to Vietnam.
This is the first time India has offered an active warship as a present.
The move was announced by the Indian Navy a week after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh offered the vessel to his Vietnamese counterpart General Phan Van Giang during the latter's visit to Delhi earlier this month.
The country's navy said that handing over the Kirpan to Vietnam "reflects India's commitment to assist its like-minded partners in enhancing their capacity and capability".
"This is the first time a fully operational corvette has been gifted by India to any friendly foreign country," the Indian Navy added.

Geopolitical Realities of Indo-Pacific

China and some countries of the Indo-Pacific region - including Vietnam - are in dispute over affiliation of the South China Sea (SCS). China has repeatedly claimed ownership of the South China Sea (SCS) in its entirety. This has led to concerns in other south-east Asian countries that also claim ownership of some parts of the region - if not the SCS in its entirety.
Vietnam is among one of the claimants in the SCS region where countries such as the Philippines, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Brunei also assert sovereignty.
Talks between PM Narendra Modi and PM Pham Minh Chinh of Vietnam  - Sputnik India, 1920, 25.05.2023
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China, however, claims the largest portion of the sea, based on its nine-dash line theory.
The nine-dash line is a set of lines marked on various maps dating back to the Forties that specify China's territorial claims in the South China Sea.
The contested area includes several groups of islands that are known by different names - the Paracel Islands, the Spratly Islands, Pratas Island and the Vereker Banks, the Scarborough Shoal, and the Macclesfield Bank.

India's Border Standoff With China

In this light, India's decision to offer the Navy warship to Vietnam is being seen as part of its gambit in south-east Asia, especially at a time when it is engaged in a protracted military stand-off with China at its northern border in Eastern Ladakh.
The Indian and Chinese armies have been in an eye-to-eye situation since May 2020 when troops of the two countries ran into each other in the Ladakh sector.
Since then several rounds of diplomatic and military talks have taken place but the discussions have failed to defuse the crisis.
Russion Rosatom corporation's logo - Sputnik India, 1920, 07.04.2023
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Warmth in India-Vietnam Defence Ties

With regard to the ties between New Delhi and Hanoi, Vietnam is perhaps India's closest partner in the defence realm in south-east Asia.
The two nations have been experiencing an improvement in defence ties with the Indian and Vietnamese militaries carrying out joint exercises at regular intervals.
Furthermore, Vietnam is also in talks with India to buy three to five batteries of the Brahmos missile, an Indo-Russian joint venture.
The deal is reportedly valued at more than $600Mln.
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