Contest for the Indian Ocean

 The July 2025 issue of Asia Policy contains a book review roundtable of Darshana M. Baruah's book titled The Contest for the Indian Ocean and the Making of a New World Order (Yale University Press 2024).  The focus of the book is great power competition and the role of the island countries in the Indian Ocean.

The roundtable consists of the following brief discussions:

--Power Asymmetry and Competition in the Indo-Pacific: The Island States of the Indian Ocean by Frederic Grare.

--Prioritizing the Indian Ocean in the Indo-Pacific by Nilanthi Samaranayake.

--The Agency of Island States in the Geopolitics of the Indian Ocean by Isabelle Saint-Mezard.

--The Island States Have Agency in the Contest for the Indian Ocean--But How? by Pradeep Taneja.

--Opening, Broadening, and Deepening the 'Geo' in the Geoppolitics of the Indian Ocean by Sanjay Chaturvedi.

--Author's Response: Reframing the Indian Ocean Debate by Darshana M. Baruah.

The Importance of Diego Garcia to US Strategy in the Indian Ocean

 The Foreign Policy Research Institute published on 21 April 2025 an analysis titled "How the UK-Mauritius Deal on Chagos Could Reshape US Military Strategy in the Indian Ocean" by Raghvendra Kumar.  

Diego Garcia hosts a joint Anglo-American military base with a deepwater port capable of berthing aircraft carriers, a long runway that enables deep-strike operations and accommodates heavy bombers and refueling aircraft, advanced satellite communication facilities, and strategically pre-positioned military support and supplies.

The Diego Garcia base, which most recently has been used to launch airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, remains critical to US military strategy in the Indian Ocean.  It provides the strategic depth necessary to deter aggression, defend US interests, restore freedom of navigation, and secure vital sea lines of communication.   It takes on added importance as China expands its military footprint in the Indian Ocean region.