The Subsurface Dimension of Sino-Indian Maritime Rivalry

Abstract

Iskander Rehman describes the subsurface capabilities and interactions of the Indian and Chinese navies, where China enjoys a clear quantitative superiority over India in all three components of the submarine fleet—conventional, nuclear attack, and nuclear ballistic missile submarines. Whereas the PLAN has long privileged subsurface warfare as part of an offensive sea denial strategy, the Indian Navy has traditionally focused on sea control. However, this may be changing. Beijing’s growing interest in ‘open seas protection’ may divert resources away from offensively minded operations towards defensive escort missions for PLAN surface task forces. The Indian Navy’s growing interest in standoff strike is also giving new emphasis on subsurface land attack capabilities. In reality, Sino-Indian rivalry to the maritime domain is still very much in its opening phases. Sino-Indian naval rivalry is set to unfold over the course of many decades, and submarines will be at the forefront of this competition.