LIGNET: Chinese Naval Moves Threaten India

Relations between India and China have become tense as China increases its naval presence in the Indian Ocean, tightening the “string of pearls” around India, according to a new LIGNET.com analysis.

In late November, China’s first aircraft carrier left the port of Dalian for a second round of sea trials in the Indian Ocean. It’s the first of three carriers that China has said it plans to deploy by 2016 to secure oil imports coming from the Persian Gulf.

Although much of China’s naval power is focused on sea-denial —preventing an opposing navy from controlling its maritime borders — the three carriers would give China a blue-water capability to extend power into the Indian Ocean and elsewhere.

This development creates a classic security dilemma: China’s efforts to secure the flow of oil may be legitimate, but they also work to encircle India and alarm the United States.

To read LIGNET.com's full analysis of this story, click HERE.