India has extended its naval reach near China—its border and nuclear rival—as one of its warships arrived in South Korea during a deployment across the Indo-Pacific region.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Why It Matters

India and China—both nuclear-armed, possessing an estimated 180 and 600 warheads, respectively—share the world’s longest disputed land border, which spans 2,100 miles. The border has been a flash point for decades, including a deadly clash in June 2020.

Facing China’s growing presence across the Indian Ocean, India has strengthened its ties with China’s rivals—including the United States, Australia and Japan—to form a strategic alignment and with Southeast Asian nations under its Act East policy.

Last month, the Indian navy took part in a multinational military exercise in the South China Sea, where China’s sweeping claims of sovereignty overlap with those of other regional countries, including the Philippines—a new security partner of New Delhi.

What To Know

The Indian frigate INS Sahyadri visited Busan, South Korea, on Monday for the first-ever naval drill between the two countries. The warship has been on what the Indian navy called “an operational deployment” to the South China Sea and the Indo-Pacific.

The exercise consists of a harbor phase and a sea phase, according to the Indian navy. Both navies will conduct cross-deck visits and cross-training sessions during the harbor phase, while South Korea will deploy the frigate ROKS Gyeongnam for the sea phase, India’s Defense Ministry said in a statement.

“With the ever-increasing significance of the Indo-Pacific in the geopolitical seascape, both [India and South Korea] have increasingly recognized the importance of building partnerships, based on mutual interests,” the statement continued.

The Indian naval deployment to the Korean Peninsula comes as China—which operates the world’s largest navy by hull count—seeks to militarize the Yellow Sea between itself and South Korea by maintaining a strong naval presence in the disputed waters.

The Sahyadri previously visited Malaysia on October 2, marking its third visit to the Southeast Asian country since 2016. The visit sought to strengthen maritime military cooperation and interoperability between the two navies, India’s Defense Ministry said.

The Defense Ministry described the warship as “a shining example of India’s ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ vision,” a policy Prime Minister Narendra Modi advocates to make the South Asian power self-reliant in defense, space, electronics and other key areas of social development.

What People Are Saying

India’s Defense Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday: “The Navy-to-Navy interactions between India and South Korea have grown significantly in recent years, along with their strategic partnership. The ongoing inaugural [Indian navy-Republic of Korea navy] bilateral exercise is the culmination of years of discussions and planning between the two navies.”

The Indian navy wrote on Facebook on Wednesday: “INS Sahyadri‘s ongoing operational deployment to the South China Sea and Indo-Pacific, underscores India’s stature as a responsible maritime stakeholder and Preferred Security Partner.”

What Happens Next

It remains to be seen where the Indian warship will be deployed next, including a possible transit of the Taiwan Strait—an international waterway that separates China and Taiwan. Beijing has claimed sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the strait.