Contemporary Geopolitical Drivers behind India’s NSP Ambition in the Indian Ocean Region
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.69760/portuni.26070003Keywords:
Geopolitical drivers, regional power competition, net security provider, Indian Ocean RegionAbstract
India’s ambition as a net security provider in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) has emerged as a central pillar of its contemporary maritime strategy. This article examines the contemporary geopolitical drivers that underpin this ambition. It argues that India’s role as a net security provider is less a reflection of an altruistic security provision and more a strategic reaction fuelled by geopolitical drivers that intensify regional power competition in the IOR. It analyses key geopolitical developments in the IOR that shape the security environment of India. It also contributes to the literature on geopolitics in the IOR and maritime security by highlighting the causal link between external geopolitical drivers and the strategic self-positioning of India. Process tracing and discourse analysis methods of qualitative research are used. A hypothesis is formulated and tested from a theoretical framework of neoclassical realism: geopolitical drivers that intensify regional power competition in the Indian Ocean Region increase India’s ambition to position itself as a net security provider. Deductive reasoning is processed to draw an inference.
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