Institute of Social and Cultural Engineering

India - Sri Lanka Ties & Development: Strategic Importance of Sri Lanka

- Sriraj Pradhan (Author)

India after its independence evolves gradually but its idea of being the world leader can be seen from its ideology of NAM where India became leader for recently independent nation of Africa and Asia.

India’s foreign policy in the first decade of its independence revolves around with the policies of ‘cordial relation with neighboring countries’ in order to achieve its goal to be a great power the neighboring countries were playing a significant role in India’s mission to a be global power till today the neighboring countries like Srilanka, Bhutan, Nepal has a strategic importance for India.

However, in this entire South Asian nation Srilanka is one of the nations which have deep strategic importance as Sri Lanka, unlike the other South Asian nations, is located in the centre of the Indian Ocean at a strategic position. There are various other factors which make Srilanka as a strategically significant Nation for India.

Indian Ocean Region

From a geostrategic standpoint, Sri Lanka's location in the Indian Ocean is very important because many trade sea routes go around it. In terms of shipping, approximately two-thirds of the world's oil and half of its container shipment pass from the south of Sri Lanka; as a result, Sri Lanka becomes crucial for the security of sea lines of communications in the Indian Ocean.

Sri Lanka is home to a number of ports that, if utilized to their full potential, may serve as significant Indian Ocean maritime centers. Since the area is a hotspot for big countries to project their strength, Sri Lanka's location makes it a key player in the Indian Ocean. Sri Lanka's geographic location and access to regional markets greatly enhance its economic interests.

The sea lanes in the Indian Ocean are considered among the most strategically important in the world more than 80 percent of the world’s seaborne trade in oil transits through the Indian Ocean choke points, with 40 percent passing through the Strait of Hormuz, 35 percent through the Strait of Malacca and 8 percent through the Bab el Mandeb Strait.

Due to the fact that this route will be used for the majority of international trade, the Indian Ocean will serve as the focal point of all major wars.

India, China, and the United States' interests and spheres of influence are starting to converge in this region. The worldwide power dynamics of the twenty-first century will be unveiled here. India and China are two important nations in this region.

With that the idea of QUAD emerged basically to counter Chinese influence from the Indian Ocean and its side countries where countries like Japan US and India formed an organization called QUAD.

Admiral Alfred Mahan’s statement, “Whoever controls the Indian Ocean dominates Asia.”

This statement has become more relevant in the contemporary era the power has shifted towards Asia the Indian Ocean region and its nearby nations gained more importance like Sri Lanka.

Chinese Influence

China's assertive soft power diplomacy has been widely regarded as the most significant factor in reshaping the strategic situation in the Indian Ocean. China has gained significant goodwill and influence among nations in the IOR by offering sizable loans with favourable repayment terms, investing in significant infrastructure projects like the construction of roads, dams, ports, power plants, and railways, as well as providing military assistance and political support in the UN Security Council by using its veto powers.

With the influence of China in the Indian region it is situation for security concern for India due to Sri Lanka’s strategic location and geographical proximity. Sri Lanka’s economic and therefore political dependence on China has led to an increase in Chinese influence in the country. It is also discussed whether China, which has leased the operations of the Hambantota Port for 99 years in the short term, will establish a base there.

Given the rivalry and problems between India and China and India’s desire to maintain stability, peace, and security in the region, Sri Lanka becomes even more important. Because the country, which is geographically close to India, may create a security vulnerability for India as it is in the economic grip of China.

Strategically the concept of the Chinese ‘string of pearls ‘to surround India by making various naval ports and bases in all the neighbouring countries is a concern of security for India as India and China already fought a war so to counter with this India adopted concept of diamond of necklaces which requires the support of neighbouring countries.

With the influence of China in the Indian ocean region, Srilanka gained more importance’s from the Indian security perspective.

Economy & Trade

Since time immemorial, the Indian Ocean has been an important location in the strategic calculations of the great powers of the world, primarily due to the economic impact of the Indian Ocean in the east-west maritime trade. India has traditionally been among Sri Lanka’s largest trade partners and Sri Lanka remains among the largest trade partners of India in the SAARC. India was Sri Lanka’s largest trading partner with an overall bilateral merchandise trade of US$ 5.45 billion in 2021. India imports about 70 percent of its oil through the Indian Ocean Region to its various ports. As a consequence, it has been enhancing its strategic influence through the use of soft power, by becoming a major foreign investor in regional mining, oil, gas, and infrastructure projects.

Sri Lanka‘s location is very crucial in the Indian Ocean from a geostrategic perspective, numerous trade sea routes pass around Sri Lanka, In terms of shipping around two-third of world’s oil and half of the world’s container shipment passes from the south of Sri Lanka, hence Sri Lanka becomes important for the security of Sea Lines of Communications in the Indian Ocean. Apart from that Sri Lanka hosts several ports which if developed to their full potential can be important maritime hubs in the Indian Ocean. Sri Lanka’s geographic location and access to regional markets add immensely to its economic interests, and as the region is a hotbed for power projection of great powers, its location makes it an important player in the security of Indian Ocean.

As the power in the contemporary era shifted from Europe to Asia the Indian ocean region and countries like Sri Lanka became very significant for economic development.