India wades into the South China Sea

India has waded more overtly into territorial disputes between China and Southeast Asian nations in the South China Sea, a move that promises to raise tensions between the New Delhi and Beijing.

"Not that we expect to be in those waters [South China Sea] very frequently, but when the requirement is there for situations where the country's interests are involved … We will be required to go there and we are prepared for that," Indian navy chief Admiral D K Joshi said last month.

Notwithstanding India's evolving and complex bilateral relations with China, and its usual reticence in confronting its Asian rival, Joshi's statement could represent a watershed moment in defining New Delhi's future position towards China's rising assertiveness in the South China Sea and signal a more ambitious Indian naval vision.

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