NEW DELHI: India on Friday conveyed its concern to Washington after a
US Navy
ship conducted "freedom of navigation patrols" in the Indian
Exclusive Economic Zone
(EEZ) near
Lakshadweep
this week.
The government quoted United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and said that other countries are not allowed to carry out in the Exclusive Economic Zone military exercise and manoeuvres, in particular those involving the use of weapons or explosives, without the consent of the coastal state.
"The USS John Paul Jones was continuously monitored transiting from the Persian Gulf towards the Malacca Straits. We have conveyed our concerns regarding this passage through our EEZ to the Government of USA through diplomatic channels," the statement said.
The government's response came after US Navy's 7th fleet said in a statement that its Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS John Paul Jones "asserted
navigational rights
and freedoms" around 130 nautical miles west of the Lakshadweep Islands, "without requesting India’s prior consent” on April 7. This, it added, was “consistent with international law".
"India requires prior consent for military exercises or maneuvers in its EEZ or continental shelf, a claim inconsistent with international law. This freedom of navigation operation (
FONOP
) upheld the rights, freedoms, and lawful uses of the sea recognised in international law by challenging India’s excessive maritime claims," said the US Navy's statement.
In the past, the US Navy has regularly conducted such patrols, dubbed as Freedom of Navigation Program (FONOP) in the contentious South China Sea to challenge China’s aggressive territorial claims over its neighbours.
A provocative declaration of similar patrols in India’s EEZ, at a time the US is seeking India’s cooperation in strengthening “alliances and partnerships” to foster “credible deterrence” against China in the
Indo-Pacific
, has raised eyebrows in New Delhi.