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India-Mauritius Strategic Partnership Pact is a National Security Win: Navy Vet
India-Mauritius Strategic Partnership Pact is a National Security Win: Navy Vet
Sputnik India
PM Modi has said that a "free, open, secure, and safe Indian Ocean is our common priority" of both India and Mauritius, while describing defence ties and maritime security as a key pillar of ties
2025-03-13T17:55+0530
2025-03-13T17:55+0530
2025-03-13T21:07+0530
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The elevation of India-Mauritius relations to the level of 'Enhanced Strategic Partnership' during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit should be viewed as a "strategic victory" for India in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), retired Commodore Seshadri Vasan, the Director General of Chennai Centre for China Studies (C3S) and the Regional Director at the National Maritime Foundation (NMF), told Sputnik India.Both nations have vowed to bolster cooperation in defence, White shipping, blue economy, and hydrography.Vasan said that smaller Indian Ocean and South Asian nations have shown the tendency to draw investments from all major powers without wanting to get embroiled in great power rivalry.India has demonstrated that it remains a "regional power of great significance", the think tank chief underlined."The US-China rivalry, be it in security or trade, is going to intensify across the globe, including the Indian Ocean Region. There is no country, big or small, which isn't going to be impacted by the great power competition," Vasan stressed.PM Modi's statement reiterating India's support on the sovereignty of Chagos, home to America's Diego Garcia military base, was a subtle strategic signal to the US, he said.Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told a media briefing in Port Louis on Wednesday evening that this was the first strategic partnership pact which India has inked in its neighbourhood.The new Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions' (MAHASAGAR) strategy unveiled by PM Modi during a joint presser showed India's commitment to Mauritius and other Global South in areas of trade, mutual security, development and capacity-building, he said.The countries also inked two other significant memorandums of understanding (MoUs) after restricted, delegation-level talks and tete-a-tete between PM Modi and Mauritius PM Navinchandra Ramgoolam – a technical agreement on sharing of White Shipping Information and a MoU on blue economy cooperation.Ramgoolam has appreciated India's "unwavering support" in protecting Mauritius' vast Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), regular deployment of ships and aircraft, conducting joint maritime surveillance, hydrographic surveys and patrolling, bilateral exercises and information sharing and training support, thereby emerging as a significant security provider for Mauritius, according to a joint statement.The Indian PM has vowed to bolster maritime cooperation through increased deployment of Indian naval and aerial assets for surveillance and surveys, strengthen Mauritius' maritime domain awareness (MDA) through assistance in setting-up a National Maritime Information Sharing Centre as well as increase the scope of capacity-building programmes. An understanding has also been reached on greater utilisation of the runway and jetty at the Agalega Island, which has been built with Indian assistance.Modi told Ramgoolam that Mauritius was at the junction of India’s Vision SAGAR, its Neighbourhood First approach and its commitment to the Global South."Once you have the security apparatus and willing partners on outer extremities in your area of interest, it becomes easier to monitor white shipping, grey shipping and other vessels of interest in order to counter traditional and non-traditional threats. Such enhanced levels of MDA would also go a long way for the Indian Navy to deploy its assets at times of need," the Navy veteran asserted.Explaining the significance of maritime domain awareness, Vasan stated that Mauritius lies on the "outer periphery" of India's sphere of influence, or within the second line of India's defence.These pacts showed that India's Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR) Vision had been expanded in geographical scope, which was also evidenced by the fact that PM Modi also announced a new MAHASAGAR strategy, Vasan stated.The pact on blue economy and the 'Handover of a Navigational Chart' on St Brandon Island by Indian Navy showed that India has the ability to conduct hydrographic surveys in the region, which it has been doing for decades now, he added.Vasan underlined that the conferring of Mauritius' highest civilian honour, Grand Commander of the Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean, on PM Modi, as well as India's assistance in building Mauritius' new parliament, the pacts on trading in local currencies, training of Mauritian diplomats or the second phase of High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDP), were all signs of a "greater bilateral understanding" between the two countries."This, of course, is helped by the personal chemistry between PM Modi and PM Navinchandra Ramgoolam and the large Indian diaspora, bolstering people-to-people connect," he stated, noting that around half of the island nation's population practices Hinduism.
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India-Mauritius Strategic Partnership Pact is a National Security Win: Navy Vet
17:55 13.03.2025 (Updated: 21:07 13.03.2025) PM Modi has said that a "free, open, secure, and safe Indian Ocean is our common priority" for India and Mauritius, highlighting defence ties and maritime security as key pillars.
The elevation of India-Mauritius relations to the level of 'Enhanced Strategic Partnership' during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit should be viewed as a "strategic victory" for India in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), retired Commodore Seshadri Vasan, the Director General of Chennai Centre for China Studies (C3S) and the Regional Director at the National Maritime Foundation (NMF), told Sputnik India.
Both nations have vowed to bolster cooperation in defence, White shipping, blue economy, and hydrography.
"In recent years, we have witnessed that the smaller countries in India's neighbourhood have been wary of being seen as too pro-India or pro-China. But PM Modi has been able to convince Mauritius of the great economic and security benefits to be accrued in bolstering bilateral ties," the Indian Navy veteran explained.
Vasan said that
smaller Indian Ocean and South Asian nations have shown the tendency to draw investments from all major powers without wanting to get embroiled in great power rivalry.
India has demonstrated that it remains a "regional power of great significance", the think tank chief underlined.
"The US-China rivalry, be it in security or trade, is going to intensify across the globe, including the Indian Ocean Region. There is no country, big or small, which isn't going to be impacted by the great power competition," Vasan stressed.
PM Modi's statement reiterating India's support on the sovereignty of Chagos, home to America's Diego Garcia military base, was a subtle strategic signal to the US, he said.
"Time and again, India has proven itself to be the
first responder, whether it is a water crisis in the Maldives or Cyclone Chido in Mauritius last year or a chemical tanker sinking off the coast of Sri Lanka. Unless China has a physical presence in the Indian Ocean Region, it won't be able to compete with India as far as this region is concerned," the Indian Navy veteran explained.
Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told a media briefing in Port Louis on Wednesday evening that this was the first strategic partnership pact which India has inked in its neighbourhood.
The new Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions' (MAHASAGAR) strategy unveiled by PM Modi during a joint presser showed India's commitment to Mauritius and other Global South in areas of trade, mutual security, development and capacity-building, he said.
The countries also inked two other significant memorandums of understanding (MoUs) after restricted, delegation-level talks and tete-a-tete between PM Modi and Mauritius PM Navinchandra Ramgoolam – a technical agreement on sharing of White Shipping Information and a MoU on blue economy cooperation.
The White Shipping information sharing pact would be a "shot-in-the-arm" for the Indian Navy, Misri said. He explained that the agreement would enable the real-time sharing of data to counter traditional and non-traditional threats, including concerns over drug and human trafficking, and even piracy that is beginning to show up in these areas.
Ramgoolam has appreciated India's "unwavering support" in protecting Mauritius' vast Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), regular deployment of ships and aircraft, conducting joint maritime surveillance, hydrographic surveys and patrolling, bilateral exercises and information sharing and training support, thereby emerging as a significant security provider for Mauritius, according to a joint statement.
The Indian PM has vowed to bolster maritime cooperation through increased deployment of Indian naval and aerial assets for surveillance and surveys, strengthen Mauritius' maritime domain awareness (MDA) through assistance in setting-up a National Maritime Information Sharing Centre as well as increase the scope of capacity-building programmes. An understanding has also been reached on greater utilisation of the runway and jetty at the Agalega Island, which has been built with Indian assistance.
Modi told Ramgoolam that Mauritius was at the junction of India’s Vision SAGAR, its Neighbourhood First approach and its commitment to the Global South.
The White Shipping agreement was important to expand the boundaries of India's maritime domain awareness right up to the eastern coast of Africa, Vasan commented the significance of the India-Mauritius pacts in maritime and defence cooperation.
"Once you have the security apparatus and willing partners on outer extremities in your area of interest, it becomes easier to monitor white shipping, grey shipping and other vessels of interest in order to counter traditional and non-traditional threats. Such enhanced levels of MDA would also go a long way for the Indian Navy to deploy its assets at times of need," the Navy veteran asserted.
Explaining the significance of maritime domain awareness, Vasan stated that Mauritius lies on the "outer periphery" of India's sphere of influence, or within the second line of India's defence.
"In this strategic view, countries like Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Myanmar and Bangladesh are the first line of defence, which is why any development in the neighbourhood becomes so critical for our own security interests. That is why India aspires to closely monitor the developments in the Indian Ocean Region, which are also significant due to our growing economic footprint and global stature. The Sea Lines of Communication (SLOCs) are important from the perspective of energy security and trade flows," he elaborated.
These pacts showed that India's Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR) Vision had been expanded in geographical scope, which was also evidenced by the fact that PM Modi also announced a new MAHASAGAR strategy, Vasan stated.
The pact on blue economy and the 'Handover of a Navigational Chart' on St Brandon Island by Indian Navy showed that India has the ability to conduct hydrographic surveys in the region, which it has been doing for decades now, he added.
"I believe that the pact on blue ocean economy is very significant as well, in terms of access to various hydrographic information it could make available for India. For instance, the data of salinity vs depth is very important for designing sensors and weapons. This bolsters Mauritius' capability to harness ocean data to its full economic and security advantages," the former Indian Navy officer explained.
Vasan underlined that the conferring of Mauritius' highest civilian honour, Grand Commander of the Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean, on PM Modi, as well as India's assistance in building Mauritius' new parliament, the pacts on
trading in local currencies, training of Mauritian diplomats or the second phase of High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDP), were all signs of a "greater bilateral understanding" between the two countries.
"This, of course, is helped by the personal chemistry between PM Modi and PM Navinchandra Ramgoolam and the large Indian diaspora, bolstering people-to-people connect," he stated, noting that around half of the island nation's population practices Hinduism.
