Inside this Brief Editorial Team Captain (Dr.) Gurpreet S Khurana ➢ Maritime Security………………………………p.6 Ms. Richa Klair ➢ Maritime Forces………………………………..p.13 Address ➢ Shipping, Ports and Ocean Economy.….p.21 ➢ Marine Enviornment………………………...p.35 National Maritime Foundation Varuna Complex, NH- 8 ➢ Geopolitics……………………………………….p.46 Airport Road New Delhi-110 010, India Email:[email protected] Acknowledgement : ‘Making Waves’ is a compilation of maritime news and news analyses drawn from national and international online sources. Drawn directly from original sources, minor editorial amendments are made by specialists on maritime affairs. It is intended for academic research, and not for commercial use. NMF expresses its gratitude to all sources of information, which are cited in this publication. US-Philippines Maritime Security Cooperation in the Spotlight with expanded exercise India, ASEAN focus on Maritime Security ‘China quietly resumes its activities in Doklam area’ Pakistan Navy ship SAIF reaches Oman for maritime patrolling Houthi attack on oil tanker threatens Maritime Security Page 2 of 51 Malabar 2018: Why Is It Important? Defence ministry clears decks for buying 111 choppers for navy at Rs 217 bn Russia rapidly expanding Navy with 26 new ships by end of 2018, Putin says Panel: China continues to coerce South China Sea neighbours with its Maritime Forces A Leaked photo shows that China is building a supercarrier that could rival the US' Nimitz-Class Carriers Page 3 of 51 Indian shipping companies headed for troubled waters China military develops robotic submarines to launch a new era of sea power Iran extends insurance, ships to India for oil export Chabahar Port ready to transit goods from India to Afghanistan – Iran official India’s economic growth remains intact; GDP to grow around 7.5%: FICCI Page 4 of 51 MARINE ENVIRONMENT Industry players eye potential anti-microfiber legislation Dead fish surfacing on a Vermilion beach may have been caused by lack of oxygen Plastic straws play only minor role in global plastics pollution Giant Pac-Man system could help eat up ocean plastic pollution Ocean wilderness 'disappearing' globally Calls for tighter rules after regulator approves foreign ships dumping palm oil in British waters for three years Page 5 of 51 GEOPOLITICS China to boost military ties with Sri Lanka and gift frigate India is the weakest link in the Quad? The return of the Indo-Pacific Quad Is time running out for the Gulf Cooperation Council? India, Australia up defence cooperation, plan key talks Indo-Pacific initiatives gain currency despite gaps over China Page 6 of 51 US-Philippines Maritime Security Cooperation in the Spotlight with Expanded Exercise - Prashanth Parameswaran Last week, the United States and the Philippines carried out the latest iteration of a new maritime training activity between the two sides that has taken place under Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. The interaction highlights the continuing cooperation between the two longtime treaty allies despite the challenges the relationship has faced thus far under Duterte. As I have been noting in these pages, Duterte’s emergence has seen a mix of continuity and change in U.S.-Philippine defense relations, including with respect to individual projects and exercises both countries hold. An example is the fact that while the Philippines was initially out of the Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) exercise series that the United States carries out with a number of Southeast Asian states, both sides had set up a new training activity codenamed Sama-Sama to focus on a similar list of common security concerns. The first iteration of Sama-Sama occurred last June, and the focus was on the same sorts of engagements both sides had carried out previously, with a similar level of participation from U.S. assets as well. Following Sama-Sama, the two countries also conducted a coordinated patrol in the Sulu Sea, which has become an area of ongoing maritime security cooperation involving regional as well as extra regional states to varying degrees. From July 9 to July 14, the U.S. and Philippine navies held another iteration of Sama-Sama. According to the U.S. Navy, the engagement focused on a full spectrum of naval capabilities, with engagements covering areas such as air defense, dividing, and search and rescue at sea along with shore phase symposiums and seminars including capabilities such as explosive ordnance disposal and anti-submarine and surface operations. Page 7 of 51 Interestingly, while last year’s focus was more on the Sulu Sea relatively speaking, this year saw a focus on the South China Sea. U.S. and Philippine vessels – on the U.S. side the USNS Millinocket, dividing and salvage ship USNS Salvor, and a P-8 Poseidon maritime surveillance aircraft, and on the Philippine side, Philippine navy frigate BRP Ramon Alcaraz and landing dock ship BRP Tarlac – conducted activities in the South China Sea. Notably, the timing of the engagement came during the commemoration of the second anniversary of the July 12 arbitral ruling on the Philippines’ South China Sea case against China Another notable development was the integration of Japan into the exercise, with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) joining the exercise as an observer. Beyond the development itself, this reinforces a broader trend where Japan has been included in several U.S.-Philippine bilateral engagements, including the annual Balikatan exercises, as Tokyo itself expands its security collaboration with Southeast Asian states. Apart from the engagement itself, both U.S. and Japanese officials also met with Philippine Navy officials during their visits there. To be sure, the U.S.-Philippine alliance, and the defense cooperation therein, ought to be evaluated comprehensively rather than from the perspective of a single exercise. But as U.S.-Philippine interactions develop on through the rest of the year and into 2019, engagements like Sama-Sama will continue to be ones that will be worth keeping an eye on for how ongoing collaboration is evolving. Source: thediplomat.com, 16 July 2018 India, ASEAN focus on maritime security Ministers and experts from India and ASEAN countries have vowed to work together on maritime security. That pledge comes at a time when there is growing concern about China's maritime activity in the region. Officials just wrapped up a 2-day meeting in New Delhi. ASEAN members want India to take on a bigger role when it comes to maritime security in the Asia-Pacific region. Some of the association's members are at odds with China over its military expansion in the South China Sea. But India has been cautious about expanding patrols there. An Indian military official said China's attempt to increase its influence in the Strait of Malacca poses a regional threat. That Strait connects the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said, "The summit recognizes that India and ASEAN, as maritime partners and neighbors, must work together to Page 8 of 51 ensure the security and sustainability of oceans, seas and waterways." Experts are watching for any policy change from India after this meeting. Source: www3.nhk.or.jp, 20 July 2018 ‘China quietly resumes its activities in Doklam area’ A United States Congress woman has claimed that China has 'quietly resumed' its activities in the Doklam area and neither Bhutan nor India has sought to dissuade it, an assertion that was denied by New Delhi on Thursday. Congresswoman Ann Wagner made the claim during a Congressional hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Sub-Committee for Asia and the Pacific. During the hearing, she posed a question to a State Department official, Alice G Wells, on Beijing's actions in the Himalayan region and compared them with its manoeuvres in the disputed South China Sea. Tensions between India and China reached their peak during a 73-day standoff in Doklam near Bhutan over Beijing's construction of a road in the area. The standoff ended after both sides agreed to disengage, and there have been no confirmed or official reports of China resuming any activities since then. "Although both countries backed down, China has quietly resumed its activities in Doklam and neither Bhutan nor India has sought to dissuade it. China's activities in the Himalayas remind me of its south China Sea policies. How should our failure to respond to the militarization of the South China Sea inform the international response to these Himalayan border disputes?" Wagner asked. Wager did not elaborate on her claim of China resuming its activities. In her response, Wells, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, did not directly refer to Doklam, but told Wagner and other lawmakers: "I would assess that India is vigorously defending its northern borders and this (the situation at the northern borders) is a subject of concern to India." Wells said US looks to the Indo-Pacific strategy put forward by the Trump administration in light of the 'South China Sea's Strategy', a reference to China's aggressive claims of sovereignty over all of South China Sea. Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei and Taiwan have counterclaims. "How do we maintain the region to be open, to have maritime security, to not have militarisation that would imperil the 70 per cent of global trade?" Wells said. "We need to do that by giving authority Page 9 of 51 to sovereign nations to have choices in how they develop, to have choices in their partnerships," Wells said. In New Delhi, Minister of State for External Affairs Ministry V K Singh told Rajya Sabha on Thursday that there have been no new developments at the site of the face- off with China in Doklam and its vicinity, and status quo prevails in the area.