Deep Currents and Rising Tides

The Indian Ocean region has rapidly emerged as a hinge point in the changing global balance of power and the geographic nexus of economic and security issues with vital global consequences. The security of energy supplies, persistent poverty and its contribution to political extremism, piracy, and related threats to seaborne trade, competing nuclear powers, and possibly the scene of future clashes between rising great powers India and China—all are dangers in the waters or in the littoral states of the Indian Ocean region.

This volume, one of the first attempts to treat the Indian Ocean Region in a coherent fashion, captures the spectrum of cooperation and competition in the Indian Ocean Region. Contributors discuss points of cooperation and competition in a region that stretches from East Africa, to Singapore, to Australia, and assess the regional interests of China, India, Pakistan, and the United States. Chapters review possible “red lines” for Chinese security in the region, India’s naval ambitions, Pakistan’s maritime security, and threats from non-state actors—terrorists, pirates, and criminal groups—who challenge security on the ocean for all states.

This volume will interest academics, professionals, and researchers with interests in international relations, Asian security, and maritime studies.

Table of Contents

Introduction
John Garofano and Andrea J. Dew

Part I: Energy, Piracy, Terror, and Access
1. The Indian Ocean: Geographic Center of the Global Oil Market
Sarah A. Emerson and Vivek S. Mathur
2. Maritime Piracy in the Indian Ocean: A Statistical Analysis of Reported Incidents, 1994-2011
John Martin
3. Horn of Troubles: Understanding and addressing the Somali "Piracy" Phenomenon
Clive Schofield and Robin Warner
4. Armed Groups at Sea: Maritime Terrorism in the Indian Ocean Region
Michael Richardson and Andrea J. Dew

Part II: Emerging Rivalries and Possible Triggers
5. India: Dominance, Balance, or Predominance in the Indian Ocean?
Andrew C. Winner
6. Pakistan’s View of Security in the Indian Ocean
Moeed Yusuf
7. China and the Indian Ocean: New Departures in Regional Balancing
Jingdong Yuan
8. Redlines for Sino-Indian Naval Rivalry
James R. Holmes and Toshi Yoshihara

Part III: Third Powers and the Way Forward
9. International Law and the Future of Indian Ocean Security
James Kraska
10. A Merlion at the Edge of an Afrasian Sea: Singapore’s Strategic Involvement in the Indian Ocean
Emrys Chew
11. The Indian Ocean and US National Security Interests
Timothy D. Hoyt
12. Conclusion: Access and Security in the Indian Ocean Region
John Garofano and Andrea J. Dew

List of Contributors

Index

Reviews

"This very valuable book proves there remains a group of intelligent, forward thinking and, above all, realistic people who are capable of looking at faraway but important places and well into the future . . . very well worth reading and thinking about carefully."—Ausmarine and Work Boat World

"A pick for any college-level collection strong in security studies and politics, and examines the Indian Ocean region’s geographic, economic and security issues. This consideration is one of the first to gather perspectives from a range of contributors who consider points of interest of different nations and their regional interests."—Midwest Book Review

"The contributors define the issues well and make an excellent case for the region’s importance to the future of international security."—Choice

"Academics and students with a specific interest in international relations or Indian Ocean region issues will find this an outstanding presentation."—Midwest Book Review

"Marks a major scholarly effort both to depict and explain the Indian Ocean Regions’ (IOR) present and future importance to international security . . . . A timely and informative book presenting the points of cooperation and competition that will shape developments in the increasingly important IOR . . . . A must-read book for anyone interested in or affected by events in Asia or the Indian Ocean."—Proceedings

"The Indian Ocean is not only a great body of water but also a geopolitical concept that unites the Middle East and the Western Pacific into one organic continuum, covering the southern Eurasian Rimland. This book adds badly needed depth and specificity to the many security challenges that will make this ocean a major part of the news panorama of the twenty-first century."—Robert Kaplan, author of Monsoon: The Indian Ocean and the Future of American Power

"This is a vital, comprehensive book on a critical ocean region that will determine the wider geopolitics and balance of power in Asia and beyond. The Indian Ocean promises to become the hub of global geopolitical competition."—Brahma Chellaney, Asian geostrategist, Center for Policy Research, Winner of the Asia Society's Bernard Schwartz 2012 Book Award

"A detailed and wide-ranging analysis of the central security issues facing an increasingly critical region."—S. Paul Kapur, professor, Department of National Security Affairs, US Naval Postgraduate School

Contributors

Emrys ChewAndrea J. DewSarah A. EmersonJohn GarofanoJames HolmesTimothy D. HoytJames KraskaVivek S. MathurJohn MartinMichael RichardsonClive SchofieldRobin WarnerAndrew C. WinnerToshi YoshiharaJing-dong YuanMoeed Yusuf

Supplemental Materials

Awards

About the Author

John Garofano is dean of academic affairs, US Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island. Previously he held the Capt. Jerome Levy Chair of Economic Geography in the Strategy and Policy Department, US Naval War College.

Andrea J. Dew is the codirector of the Center on Irregular Warfare & Armed Groups, and an associate professor in the Strategy and Policy Department at the US Naval War College.