Western Indian Ocean: Key Geography for US-India Cooperation

Amidst the shifting geopolitical landscape, the United States (US) has emerged as one of India’s most consequential partners. Several strategic variables appear to have been instrumental in solidifying this relationship. Convergences between New Delhi and Washington have consolidated on key issues of trade, technology, defence, and, most importantly, on the commitment towards a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific. 

While a historical overview of the relations between New Delhi and Washington would prompt appreciation over the current state of affairs between the two powers, some critical divergences continue to characterise the relations between the two powers. Historically, India and the US were seen as ‘estranged democracies’, especially during much of the Cold War period. Relations between New Delhi and Washington plummeted in the aftermath of India’s nuclear tests in Pokhran in 1998. These tests led to the US imposing sanctions on India. However, less than a decade later, the US-India Civil Nuclear Agreement, signed between the two powers in 2005, marked normalisation of relations. Arguably, India’s relations with the US have only soared since. This even prompted India’s erstwhile External Affairs Minister, Salman Kurshid, to aptly characterise the progress of the bilateral ties as ‘engaged’, from ‘estranged’. 

While a historical overview of the relations between New Delhi and Washington would prompt appreciation over the current state of affairs between the two powers, some critical divergences continue to characterise the relations between the two powers.

While India and the US have broadened and deepened their common grounds of convergence, the Indo-Pacific has become a pivotal issue that has significantly elevated their bilateral ties. Convergences between New Delhi and Washington appear to be multi-pronged. Firstly, both India and the US have exhibited normative commitment for a shared, value-based, free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific. Secondly, India and the US have both been cautioned by China’s growing footprint and increasing belligerence in the Indo-Pacific. Thirdly, beyond the imperative of security, India and the US seem to place emphasis on the Indo-Pacific for bourgeoning trade, supply chains, infrastructure-led connectivity, as well as tech-based partnerships. 

While India and the US have broadened and deepened their common grounds of convergence, the Indo-Pacific has become a pivotal issue that has significantly elevated their bilateral ties.

While the foundations of the India-US partnership in the Indo-Pacific have consolidated, several key areas of divergence remain. Importantly, sometimes, these differences arise not from divergence but from differing geopolitical realities, interests, or even worldviews. Before glancing at the Indo-Pacific, it would be helpful to take stock of such nuances between the two countries on contemporary global issues of critical importance. Arguably, two wars – one in Europe between Russia and Ukraine, and the other in the Middle East between Israel and Palestine—have been at the forefront of global geopolitical discourse for the last couple of years. The world seems to be divided on these two issues. Washington has chosen to take a clear stand on these two wars by supporting Ukraine and Israel through various means, even at the cost of wide domestic backlash. On the other hand, India’s response has been nuanced and in tandem with the implicit principle of India’s foreign policy—strategic autonomy. While India has not refrained from condemning the enduring wars and highlighting the suffering they continue to cause for innocent people, it has also maintained a strategic balance through continued engagement with both sides, albeit at the cost of criticism from the West.

The status of the Western Indian Ocean in the Indo-Pacific

In the Indo-Pacific, while China has remained a common cause of concern, both India and the US have pursued varied degrees of (dis)engagement with Beijing. This approach has been primarily guided by the strategic objectives and compulsions of both powers. However, a more significant and fundamental area of divergence has left an enduring imprint, which merits critical attention. This pertains to how India and the US continue to outline the cartographic contours of their outlook towards the Indo-Pacific. For India, the Indo-Pacific geography entails the maritime expanse between the west coast of America to the east coast of Africa. Whereas, for Washington, the Indo-Pacific expanse, as articulated by the geographical contours of the INDO PACOM, technically involves the west coast of America to the west coast of India. This entails that the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) is a missing piece of the Indo-Pacific puzzle between India and the US. Even though Washington has, in the past, sought to clarify the importance it continues to accord to the WIO in its Indo-Pacific outlook, it does not seem to be an active player in the region. The strategic importance of the Western Indian Ocean theatre has further exacerbated following the return of piracy in the region. Importantly, in the shifting global geopolitical matrix, Africa has continued to evolve as an important variable. This has further gained momentum given the critical Chinese inroads into the continent. In this context, the WIO continues to remain an important maritime expanse bridging the African continent with the Indo-Pacific. 

For India, the Indo-Pacific geography entails the maritime expanse between the west coast of America to the east coast of Africa. Whereas, for Washington, the Indo-Pacific expanse, as articulated by the geographical contours of the INDO PACOM, technically involves the west coast of America to the west coast of India.

To fill an extant strategic gap, it is important for India and the US to bolster their ties in the Indian Ocean with specific focus on the WIO theatre. The importance of the WIO for India cannot be overstated, given its core maritime security interests lie in the region. It remains a critical geography with immense scope for US-India cooperation, especially on issues of maritime security, ocean governance, critical supply chains and regional stability. The rise of piracy, the growing salience of the key Sea Lines of Communication (SLOCs) flowing through the region, and China’s growing political influence in Africa are vital concerns for India and the US. Therefore, a reorientation towards this sub-geography is important for New Delhi and Washington and merits critical attention. Nevertheless, the continued synergy between the two countries on issues pertaining to the Indo-Pacific, despite divergences in cartographic mapping of the region, demonstrates the maturity in ties amongst New Delhi and Washington. 

The WIO is critical to a common strategic future in the Indo-Pacific because it has the potential to shift the focus of the Indo-Pacific strategy westward in the region. Without a strong WIO-oriented approach, the influences from the eastern flank of the Indo-Pacific are likely to intensify, potentially nullifying the gains sought by the various iterations of the Indo-Pacific strategy—such as Pivot-to-Asia, Rebalance, and the current Indo-Pacific strategy. With common regional goals and objectives, India and the US are poised to increase their stakes in the WIO. The four foundational agreements between the two sides, real-time information exchange through the IFC-IOR, multilateral frameworks like the Quad, and the presence of like-minded extra-regional partners like France make the WIO a critical area whose potential is yet to be fully realised.

By the virtue of its location and shifting dynamics in the global order, the WIO could be pivotal, connecting the Indian Ocean with the Middle East and Africa. For India and the US, which have sought to link the Indo-Pacific with the Middle East through initiatives like the I2U2 and the IMEEC, the WIO could be the missing part of the puzzle to accelerate cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region. 

Sayantan Haldar is a Research Assistant at the Observer Research Foundation.

Vivek Mishra is a Fellow with the Strategic Studies Programme at the Observer Research Foundation.

• International Affairs
• America
• India
• The Pacific, East and Southeast Asia
• Indo-Pacific strategy
• US-India relations
• Western Indian Ocean

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