Chinese Threat Scenario: Quad’s Naval Warfare Exercise Malabar Adds New Perspective

The ongoing hostilities with China are no longer limited to India’s land border dispute, and in the future it is expected to be seen more actively in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). China is concerned about its maritime trade and the supplies arriving via these critical sea lanes, and it is not likely to be limited to military, diplomatic and political talks.

In this context, the annual Naval Former Malabar, which is planned as an effort to strengthen naval cooperation between India, Japan and the US and achieve interoperability for synergy, has far-reaching significance for India and especially for the navy.

“This time the four Quad countries, viz. The United States, India, Japan and Australia are part of the exercise. The exercise can be considered more than just position-keeping maneuvers and maritime operations. India’s efforts to create maritime ties over the past two decades are about to be tested, ”according to a senior Navy official, who wished to remain anonymous.

Australia – China relationship

Australia is a strong proponent of America’s regional influence and is seen as a major obstacle to Chinese maritime ambitions. Australia has a military collaboration with the United States and strategic security relations with Japan, China’s closest strategic rival. “For Australia, Taiwan is an important link in global supply chains for advanced manufacturing. And Japan and South Korea, along with China, are some of Australia’s most important trading partners. Therefore, stability in this region is vital to the Australian economy. China’s aggression towards Taiwan has caught the attention of the West and the United States, along with its allies, has come out more aggressively in the Southeast Asian region, and this is likely to propel India as a local naval power in the region. ” said the officer quoted above. explained.

Advantages for the Indian Navy

Australia has an important geopolitical role in the region and is an advanced nation of the NATO alliance in the Southeast Asian region.

Milind Kulshreshtha, the man behind the design of the indigenous Naval Combat Management System (CMS) and an expert on C4I, says: “Warships and submarines operated by the Royal Australian Navy possess some of the latest weapons in the arsenal of the Royal Australian Navy. NATO, and the SSM, SAM, and anti-ship capabilities are unique for effective support in the Southeast Asian region. These capability advantages would be the focus of the study of the Indian Navy in the role of supporting the fleet during Ex Malabar. For example, the well-proven 124 km Harpoon anti-ship cruise missiles aboard Australian warships and naval helicopters are also capable of striking land targets, coastal fortifications, enemy airfields, ports, etc. The missiles are accurate to attack ships entering and leaving ports or traveling on congested shipping lanes. This is the unique type of capability that would be in the interest of the Indian Navy to create an international tactical support unit in the IOR. “

Mr. Kulshreshtha, while designing the CMS for the Indian Navy, had also studied Lockheed Martin’s CMS Aegis, which is in the Australian Navy. “Aegis CMS is a high-capacity C4I system that would be at the core of planning and executing Australian naval operations alongside US and Japanese forces. The Air Defense capabilities, in conjunction with the surface and subsurface capabilities designed into the core of the Aegis CMS, will be a great tactical advantage even for Indian warships as they are part of the multinational fleet within an Aegis Air protection bubble. Defense. ”Explains Mr. Kulshreshtha.

According to the designer of the Indian Navy’s CMS, “India’s own CMS systems on board modern warships have different threat perception algorithms and mechanisms, and it will be interesting to see the results as part of the friendly fight. on the high seas, although interoperability between NATO and the Indian Navy has yet to be achieved. But these war games will also be watched closely by China, probably using submarines underwater and, most importantly, from space. Anti-submarine patrols launched by India in conjunction with Australian Navy MH-60R helicopters will keep an eye out for alien submarines in the exercise region. “

Cybersecurity and Space Command

However, it would be very advantageous for India in case participation in the sea could be supported by the interoperability of the cybersecurity and space command with the members of the Quad. According to the C4I expert, “Cybersecurity is likely to be the future starting point of any skirmish with China. And, a multinational cooperation against hacking and cyber espionage data on attacks emanating from Chinese sources is valuable information with Australia. India would also like to be aware of its own commercial and defense agencies. “

In 2011, the Australian parliament’s computer network was hacked to gain access to the new Australian Security Intelligence Organization. The cyber vulnerability study already conducted by Australia may also be advantageous for the Indian defense forces, as cyberattacks emerge as India’s security priority as well.

Similarly, while India is working on the Space Command rule set, a multinational exchange of military information is something that India can only observe during a joint exercise like Ex Malabar, as NATO ships and submarines have a sophisticated real-time communication network established on advanced SATCOM backbone. “In today’s network-centric warfare, such capabilities, even limited capabilities like tracking hostile targets, could be the most advantageous in establishing India’s position in IOR,” concludes Kulshreshtha.