News / Military

US, India considering joint patrols in South China Sea

Wednesday, 10 February 2016 5:27 PM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 10 February 2016 5:28 PM ]

Two MV-22 Ospreys land on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) in the South China Sea, on November 5, 2015. (AFP photo)

The US and India have held talks about carrying out joint naval patrols in the South China Sea, a move that would likely anger Beijing, which claims most of the disputed waterway.

A senior US defense official told Reuters Wednesday that the two sides had discussed joint patrols, adding that both were hopeful of launching them within the year.

A Pentagon spokesman, Commander Bill Urban, said the United States and India "continue to explore ways to deepen defense cooperation, including in the area of maritime security", but no decisions had been made on joint patrols.

The patrols are likely to be conducted in the Indian Ocean where the Indian navy plays a major role. The South China Sea is also being considered as a possible route, the official added, giving no further details concerning the scale of the proposed patrols.

The two countries have ramped up military ties in recent years, holding naval war games in the Indian Ocean. This is while the Indian navy has never carried out joint patrols with another country.

Over the past few years India has opted for boosting economic ties with China, instead of antagonizing its more powerful neighbor over long-running land border issues.

However, as part of extending its naval presence beyond the Indian Ocean, the country has deployed a ship to the South China Sea almost constantly, a move that according to an Indian navy commander was not practiced until a few years ago.

Unlike China, which claims sovereignty over most of the disputed waters, India and the US have no such claims.

However, following US President Barack Obama’s visit to New Delhi in January 2015, the two nations expressed concern over what they called freedom of navigation and over-flight in the waters.

Late last month, the USS Curtis Wilbur, a missile destroyer, passed within 12 nautical miles of Triton Island, which is part of the Paracel Islands, a move apparently designed to increase tensions with Beijing.

Beijing accused Washington of using that as an excuse to seek maritime hegemony in the South China Sea.

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG 54) conducts a live fire gunnery exercise in the South China Sea, January 15, 2016. (AFP photo)

More than $5 trillion in maritime trade moves through the sea each year. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan also claim parts of the waterway.

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