Bharat Rakshak

Oil Security and India

An unappreciated fact is how a Chinese navy with global power projection capabilities can hurt the Indian economy . Dependence on oil is Indias Achilles heel and as its economy enlarges so will its dependence.
Chinas well placed bases abroad in the middle east, Gwadar base in Pakistan and in Iran (Chabahar) are well placed to interdict Indian supplies.
Chinas intention to arm Pakistan with 6 to 8 "conventional" subs should also be seen in this context. They are envisioning "the hook" to control the elephant!

China has to spend more money and resources to project power in Arabian Sea than India does, not to mention their entire trade traffic from/to EU and africa has to pass in the Indian Ocean where the Indian Navy can shutdown all their trade traffic if the Chinese try any stunts with India's oil supply.
The IOR is currently a global commons with a good chunk of the global chinese trade being shipped right past India->Indonesia->vietnam, and only because there is no overt war or conflict. Does it look like India has no options if the Chinese start a war by blocking Indian oil supplies?

they could well use their proxy to interdict Indian shipping lines .. pakis Chinese subs in context. Also part reason why IN is investing heavily in anti-sub capabilities

https://miro.medium.com/max/1400/0*u_Lr7dzl37kjgA1h.png

To discuss this with a map of the ocean trade routes, I just picked a random map of shipping lanes -- India can cut off all china's shipping lanes with a lot less effort and money to project its power in the IOR region -- China has to spend a lot more $$ to project power in the IOR than India does, just a matter of geography. India has the upper hand if the Chinese try any stunts. IMO, It does not stand to reason that China will try to pick a fight that will result in a blockade of their trade routes to EU/Africa