WATCH: Prepared to keep Indian Ocean safe from China, asserts Indian Navy Chief

New Delhi: Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar asserted on Wednesday that the force is well prepared to take on the threat posed by China in the Indian Ocean region.

“The Indian Ocean is a very complex area because it is very important for almost the entire world because so much of maritime traffic flows through it. So therefore, while we are the largest resident navy in the region, we have to ensure that there is peace and stability,” the Indian Navy chief told News18.

“At any point in time, there are 65-70 extra-regional navies operating in the Indian Ocean. We as the resident naval power in this region keep track of all the activities that are happening,” he added.

“There are Chinese naval ships also that are operating. There are Chinese warships, there are Chinese research vessels, Chinese fishing boats in large numbers.”

Reiterating that peace in the Indian Ocean can be achieved only through mutual co-operation Admiral R Hari Kumar highlighted the Indian Navy’s efforts to collaborate with the other naval powers in the region.

“Prosperity at sea is dependent upon peace, tranquillity, our ability to use the oceans in a free and open manner and in compliance with the rule of law. So that is what we try to achieve,” Admiral R Hari Kumar said.

“It is something which cannot be achieved by one navy alone. It has to be done in co-operation, co-ordination as well as co-ordination with all the navies in the region,” he added.

“So we have our outreach programme, we have our activities along with the friendly foreign countries in the region. We help them, interact with them, train them, facilitate their capacity building. We also strengthen their hands, conduct multi-lateral exercises and so on.”

The Admiral also informed that the Indian Navy is going through a massive development programme as part of the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative of the central government and is poised to emerge as a more formidable force in the future.

“We have capability development programmes which take into consideration the challenges that we are likely to face and based upon that, I can tell you that we already have 43 ships under construction of which 41 are being built in Indian shipyards,” he said.

“We also have nearly 49 ships which are under process. So by about 2035 or so we anticipate that we will have about 170 to 175 ships and we will be a navy which is quite capable of meeting the challenges.”

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