The United States (US) Navy has said that it successfully conducted a freedom of navigation patrol in Indian waters, adding that the exercise challenged India’s “excessive maritime claims”. The operation was conducted near the Lakshadweep Islands.
A statement by the Commander of the US Seventh Fleeth, which was published on April 7, said that USS John Paul Jones “asserted navigational rights and freedoms approximately 130 nautical miles west of the Lakshadweep Islands, inside India’s exclusive economic zone [EEZ], without requesting India’s prior consent, consistent with international law”. Further, the release added that this “upheld the rights, freedoms, and lawful uses of the sea recognised in international law”.
Responding to these reports, a senior official from the Indian government said, “We don’t object to normal transiting but if there has been an operational exercise without informing then it needs to be taken up.”
Further, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs released a statement saying: “The Government of India’s stated position on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea is that the Convention does not authorise other States to carry out in the Exclusive Economic Zone and on the continental shelf, military exercises or manoeuvres, in particular those involving the use of weapons or explosives, without the consent of the coastal state.”
The statement adds, “The USS John Paul Jones was continuously monitored transiting from the Persian Gulf towards the Malacca Straits. We have conveyed our concerns regarding this passage through our EEZ to the Government of U.S.A through diplomatic channels.”
India, which has ratified the United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), has always reiterated that in accordance with the convention, foreign entities are prohibited from conducting military exercises and manoeuvres in exclusive economic zones of other countries. Meanwhile, the US has refrained from ratifying the convention. Consequently, the US’ statement said that American forces will continue to conduct Freedom of Navigation Operations in the future, adding, “India requires prior consent for military exercises or manoeuvers in its exclusive economic zone or continental shelf, a claim inconsistent with international law.”
The US regularly conducts such patrols in disputed waters like the South China Sea, usually in a bid to challenge Chinese territorial aggression against its neighbours. However, to engage such a move against India, especially at a time when the two countries have been closely collaborating to strengthen security in the Indo-Pacific under the “Quad” format, has raised some eyebrows.
US Conducts Freedom of Navigation Operation in Indian EEZ Without Prior Consent
The US Navy said that it has successfully conducted a freedom of navigation patrol near Lakshadweep Islands without requesting India’s prior consent.
April 9, 2021
SOURCE: THE INDIAN EXPRESS