US naval move in Australia may help India take on China

[perplexed]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/US-naval-move-in-Australia-may-help-India-take-on-China/articleshow/10770868.cms

BEIJING: The US move to create a naval base in northern Australia close to the South China Sea can actually mean more dollars in the Indian kitty, and put more strategic and business opportunities in New Delhi's way, sources said. The first piece of evidence has come by way of Australia's decision to sell uranium to India.

The US move will provide a sense of protection to East Asian countries including Japan, who have serious conflicts with China but buy vast amounts of Chinese goods. The new found protection will encourage East Asia to reduce its dependence on China for goods and enhance economic ties with India, sources said.

"Japan, Vietnam and Indonesia will feel more secure. India and Indonesia can get together to control the Malacca Straits, which is the route though which 90% of Chinese goods to East Asia passes," Subramanian Swamy, Janata Party president and a widely regarded China expert, told TNN.

There are signs that China is jittery about the US move to station 2,500 US marines in the Northern Territory of Australia within five years. Beijing on Thursday warned Australia it might get "caught in the crossfire" if it allows the US to exercise its naval might in the waters around it. Washington's move has put the US navy within easy sailing reach of Vietnam, which is involved in a serious territorial dispute over oil-rich islands in the South China Sea.

The move will also bring some relief to the ONGC, which is one of the foreign companies involved in exploring oil along with Vietnamese oil firms in the South China Sea. China has bitterly criticized India on the move and asked ONGC to withdraw.

When it comes to exporting to East Asia, India cannot replace China, which has a wide range of goods to offer, Uday Bhaskar, director of the National Maritime Foundation, said.

"But there is a strategic review of the bilateral relation with India by the US, EU and Japan, wherein Indian markets are being recognized as an important driver of trade in the region," Bhaskar added.

India will need to retool its export basket if it seriously wishes to compete with China as a provider of goods in East Asia, he said.

The US move can also mean massive savings in investments being made by the Indian defence agencies on the India-China border, Abhijit Iyer-Mitra, research officer at the Institute of Conflict Studies in New Delhi, said.

"This is God sent. The more US ramps up its military presence in South China Sea, the more it will divert Beijing's attention from India," he said.

"It can actually mean a big saving on investments being made on the China border. But I doubt if our defence establishment would make the best of the opportunity. They are too attached to big budget," he said.

One thing is for sure... US just would not go away from the SE asia region pretty easily... hope they put up the fight...

 

[ramu]

Highly speculative article. I doubt even a fraction will be as described in it.

 

[IndoCarib]

when it comes to China related news, better avoid TOI

 

[sancho]

Highly speculative article. I doubt even a fraction will be as described in it.

More over, it isn't logical! The biggest parts of US naval forces in Asia are in Japan and S.Korea and they are the most important factor against China or in the easters seas. A fleet or troops in Australia are not a bigger threat to China and they have no interest in that area anyway.
Also India would not join with Indonesia, but with Singapore to keep control of the straight of malacca, especially with US influence, not to mention that Sindonesian forces are stronger.
For India, any increase of US troops in Australia has no meaning, especially not against China, because the important area to keep China busy would be a direct threat to their borders, be it with Russian or Vietnamese help, or with US and Japanese navy in the south Chinese sea.

 

[IndoCarib]

I think this is more credible

Australia’s Reversal of Uranium Ban to India Could Spur Trilateral Engagement


In a November 15 op-ed in The Age, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced that she would push her Labor Party to overturn its ban on selling uranium to India when the party meets next month.

The unexpected announcement is a testament to the growing importance that Australia attaches to ties with India and should lead to a significant deepening of their bilateral partnership.

In 2008, Australia’s Labor Party government reversed a decision by its predecessor to end the ban on export of uranium to India on the grounds that India had not signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. The issue has become an increasingly sore spot in their relationship, especially given that India received a waiver from the Nuclear Suppliers Group that opened it to the broader international civilian nuclear market that same year. It has also been duly noted in New Delhi that, in contrast to its treatment, Australia has continued to sell uranium to China, in some sense a geopolitical rival of India but also one with a suspect nonproliferation record.

There was even speculation in the Australian media that Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh avoided attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Canberra earlier this month because of the uranium controversy (although the fact that an Indian prime minister has not visited Australia in 25 years is an indication that uranium may not have been the only factor involved in Singh’s absence).

In a bold reversal of her position, Gillard declared on Tuesday, “It is time for Labor to modernize our platform and enable us to strengthen our connection with dynamic, democratic India.” Although sure to face some opposition, the initiative is expected to garner enough support to pass when the party caucuses next month.

Australia’s opening to India is already being warmly welcomed in Washington, which is pursuing deeper security ties with both countries. Given that Gillard’s announcement coincided with President Obama’s visit to Australia, Obama found it necessary to quell speculation that Washington had pressured Canberra to make the policy change. During a press conference in Canberra on Wednesday, Obama said he suspected that some “pretty smart [Australian] government officials” could figure out on their own that India is a “big player and that the Australia-India relationship is one that should be cultivated.”

The Heritage Foundation, in partnership with scholars at the Lowy Institute (an Australian think tank) and the Indian Observer Research Foundation, released “Shared Goals, Converging Interests: A Plan for U.S.–Australia–India Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific,” which lays out concrete suggestions for enhancing dialogue and cooperation among the three democratic powers in areas like maritime security, nonproliferation, and counterterrorism, with an eye to encouraging a more stable and predictable order in the Asia-Pacific region.

The report was launched in Sydney on November 4 and in New Delhi on November 7. During the launch event in New Delhi, Heritage Vice President for Foreign and Defense Policy Studies Dr. Kim Holmes told the audience, “We believe a more visible trilateral strategy should link the strengths and resources of the United States with those of Australia and India” and that a critical piece of achieving stability and security in the Indo-Pacific is a “robust, principled U.S.–India–Australia trilateral relationship.”

It just so happens that one of the main topics during the roundtable discussions and in Heritage Foundation meetings with Australian and Indian officials was the uranium issue and how it was a major stumbling block not only to furthering Indo–Australian bilateral relations but also to moving forward with the concept of trilateral cooperation with the U.S. Now that Canberra is ready to remove this major irritant, it is time for all three countries to seriously consider the merits of greater cooperation, including a formal trilateral dialogue. In the process—and in the cause of further confidence building—perhaps India could return Australia’s uranium gesture by sending Singh on a long-delayed visit to Australia.


Australia's Reversal of Uranium Ban to India Could Spur Trilateral Engagement

 

[Bharthi]

"This is God sent. The more US ramps up its military presence in South China Sea, the more it will divert Beijing's attention from India

 

[Kaniska]

Agreed....TOI is a complete with sensationalism...It does not report the facts properly...

 

[StrikeForce]

I just saw this strange thing "Chinese structures Built up" in the region with the last one a miniature model of Arunachal Pradesh... Are they practicing anything for a large scale war with India...

Source:
Why Is China Building These Gigantic Structures In the Middle of the Desert? (Update 3)

Verfied with Google Maps!!! Something really strange...

 

[cyphercide]

What bull.If taking on China was the end objective,India would have signed up for the NATO coalition years ago....missile shields...bomber TOT,the works etc....In my opinion, India still wants to integrate herself with the Asiatic bloc.Else.....heheh,you all know the boogeyman all too well...Sleep tight!!!

 

[StrikeForce]

What bull.If taking on China was the end objective,India would have signed up for the NATO coalition years ago....missile shields...bomber TOT,the works etc....In my opinion, India still wants to integrate herself with the Asiatic bloc.Else.....heheh,you all know the boogeyman all too well...Sleep tight!!!

Its not India taking on China, I guess you forgot history and its China took on India by surprise in '62. And still they claim parts of India theirs as South Tibet wherein Tibet itself is not theirs

Just remember that China almost bullying all nations these days in and around the world and that may bring in temporary fear in countries but in a long run things might not be as rosy as it apears to be for China.

Suddenly India's look east policy is taking a broader picture as its not just in the interest of India but in the interest of tiny east asian countries which are constantly threatened by China... They eventually started looking for a friend in India to counter the threat perception.

USA staging marines in Australia is one such a step..

Not to forget.. USA-Japan-South Korea-India with countries like Vietnam-Indonesia-Taiwan can give sleepless nights to Chinese..

And overall i believe their bullying can be best compared with Germans in late 30's and they will have even worse fate than Germans...

Another war could change demographies for ever...Only time will tell this.

 

[newdelhinsa]

Oh! I wasted my few minutes reading ToI article.

 

[cyphercide]

Its not India taking on China, I guess you forgot history and its China took on India by surprise in '62. And still they claim parts of India theirs as South Tibet wherein Tibet itself is not theirs

Just remember that China almost bullying all nations these days in and around the world and that may bring in temporary fear in countries but in a long run things might not be as rosy as it apears to be for China.

Suddenly India's look east policy is taking a broader picture as its not just in the interest of India but in the interest of tiny east asian countries which are constantly threatened by China... They eventually started looking for a friend in India to counter the threat perception.

USA staging marines in Australia is one such a step..

Not to forget.. USA-Japan-South Korea-India with countries like Vietnam-Indonesia-Taiwan can give sleepless nights to Chinese..

And overall i believe their bullying can be best compared with Germans in late 30's and they will have even worse fate than Germans...

Another war could change demographies for ever...Only time will tell this.

Not possible,In the age of precision guided munitions,missile regiments,ground troop deployment or strategic air strikes.......rest assured we will put the dragon to sleep forever........castrated!!!

 

[fast]

We move into Australia also strengthening our grasp on Indian Ocean. Nice move Obama.

 

[Kinetic]

We move into Australia also strengthening our grasp on Indian Ocean. Nice move Obama.

There should be some limit, even if it is a falseflag BS.

 

[DarK-LorD]

We move into Australia also strengthening our grasp on Indian Ocean. Nice move Obama.

Are you sure that the star spangled banner is the right flag for you?