Ali Basit
SEYCHELLES is located in the western Indian Ocean, with a combined land area of 455 square kilometres and located about 1,000 miles east of Kenya. The Seychelles consists of 115 islands and having a population of around 90,000 residents. As piracy and other maritime threats increased in the Indian Ocean, the Seychelles benefited from forward-thinking leaders willing to engage with other nation states. The Seychelles government cooperates with a diverse range of nations and organizations on various maritime issues. It has worked with international organizations to combat maritime crime and also participated in numerous international naval exercises. Furthermore, it has also been engaged in bilateral deals with foreign nations to bolster its training and capacity through the acquisition of sea and air assets. There are some reflections: In 2014, the European Union (EU) donated flight planning system to the island. The system helped their Air Force to effectively monitor the maritime domain and this capacity provided admissible evidence in piracy prosecutions. Whereas in 2015, the Seychelles became the first regional nation to chair the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia, serving for two years. Moreover, in 2018, the island hosted a multilateral naval exercise named Cutlass Express, a US Africa Command’s naval exercise. The exercise was aimed to collectively combat human trafficking, piracy and to conduct search-and-rescue operations in the western Indian Ocean region. Participants to the exercise came from Australia, Canada, Comoros, Denmark, Djibouti, France, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, New Zealand, the Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, the Netherlands, Turkey and the US.
However, the island is striving to secure its sea borders as its economy largely dependent upon sea. Its revenues derive chiefly from the fishing and tourism industries and any organized crime at sea can endanger its commerce. For that very reason, it strives to be more aware of its maritime domain and, therefore, works tirelessly to protect and cultivate it as a source of wealth and prosperity. While appreciating the efforts that are being systematized by the Seychelles to secure its maritime borders, Pakistan Navy has extended its support to the island by sending its two advanced ships namely Frigate PNS ASLAT and Oil Tanker PNS MOAWIN which recently visited the port of Victoria, Seychelles as part of their Overseas Deployment. The convoy during its long expedition to African states visited ports of Morocco, Mauritania, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya and Tanzania, prior to reaching to Seychelles. During this recent visit, the Pakistan Navy contingent interacted with range of local and foreign dignitaries and exchanged views on the regional security construct especially the threats from non-traditional sources including terrorism, piracy and drug trafficking etc. Besides maritime security, mutual experience and endeavours on maritime blue economy were deliberated. Moreover, highlighting the situation in India-occupied Kashmir remained as a focal point during this recent voyage. To signify this most substantial policy objective, the mission commander has drawn attention of the worthy delegates, dignitaries and various other diplomatic officials to the illegal actions of the Indian government in the India-occupied Jammu and Kashmir which has endangered the security of the entire region and the world at large. In transforming the bilateral relations with Seychelles, Pakistan hopes that this recent visit by the Navy ships will pave the way for further strengthening the existing military as well as the diplomatic ties between the two countries. Furthermore, the deployment of Pakistan Navy ships depicts a perfect example of effective naval diplomacy that will help break the ground for further cooperation and collaboration in various domains. Now it is prerogative of MOFA to further utilize the gains of these deployments through diplomatic channels.
Furthermore, it is also pertinent to note that Indian government is trying to grow its relations with Seychelles and have plans to develop its first overseas military base at Assumption Island in Seychelles. The project was announced during PM Modi’s Indian Ocean tour in March 2015. During the visit, an agreement was reached between New Delhi and Victoria to jointly develop Assumption Island. The agreement was important because it gave India an opportunity to place its strategic assets directly in the Indian Ocean region. Moreover, the government of India is looking to invest $550 million to build the military base in Seychelles. The principal aims for India’s decision to build up an overseas military base in Assumption are manifold. First, a military base on the strategically located island will be useful to ensure safe passage of shipping vessels in the Southern Indian Ocean region. Second, the base will allow the Indian Navy to closely monitor the Mozambique Channel. Third, the base could counter Chinese influence and increasing securitization of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).However, since the agreement was signed, a number of issues and criticisms have cropped up and progress toward its ratification remained slow. The deal has faced immense protest from locals who view the Indian presence in the small island nation as a threat. Various stakeholders in Seychelles, ranging from politicians and lawyers to government officials, believe that the nation is capable of building its own military base and training its own soldiers, and does not require foreign assistance.
However, in the above prevailing situation, the significance of Pakistan Navy’s initiative to visit African states has increased manifold. The aim of these visits primarily is to focus on diplomatic fronts to have fostering intra-regional ties with Africa. Moreover, it also focused to contribute to expand threat free regional maritime environment through collective approach. These initiatives are also directed to enhance the maritime trade reach in the African maritime community in accordance with the recent Pakistan’s foreign policy initiative of “Engage Africa.” To sum up, it is clear that the maritime frontier that envelops the African continent is of the utmost importance to the world and worthy of our consideration as an arena for improved international cooperation. Hope resides in the possibility that the regional powers will perceive the abundant opportunities in Africa as a strategic opportunity rather than a challenge. Their participation could transform the African region into a globally beneficial enterprise and ultimately would be wise to opt for ‘win-win’ cooperation rather than ‘lose-lose’ confrontation.
—The writer is freelance columnist, based in Lahore.
