The Exercise is to address common maritime challenges and underscore shared dedication to upholding international law and the rules-based order.
- SCS is a part of Western Pacific Ocean stretching roughly from Singapore and the Strait of Malacca in the southwest, to the Strait of Taiwan in the northeast.
- It is crucial shipping lane, a rich fishing ground, home to a highly biodiverse coral reef ecosystem, and believed to hold substantial oil and gas resources.
- Several bordering countries claim portions of the islands to assert sovereignty over the surrounding sea and its resources.
- China continues to press claims to almost the entire SCS.
- Earlier in 2016, Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruled under United Nations Convention on Law of the Seas (UNCLOS) that its assertion has no legal basis.
- China has refused to acknowledge the ruling till date.
- In recent times, India has also enhanced its military and diplomatic engagement with claimant states such as the Philippines and Vietnam.
- Strategic interests, freedom of navigation, and oil and gas resources are the factors determining India’s expanded involvement in the SCS.