India has solidified its role as a &ldquo;preferred security partner&rdquo; in the Indo-Pacific, building a web of defence partnerships that span joint military exercises, capacity-building programmes, and the export of defence equipment either as grants or through defence Lines of Credit tailored to partner nations&rsquo; needs, according to former diplomat Suchitra Durai.
Expanding Maritime Cooperation India&rsquo;s trilateral maritime security arrangement with Sri Lanka and the Maldives, launched in 2011, now includes Mauritius and Bangladesh, with Seychelles as an observer under the Colombo Security Conclave, which operates with a formal charter and secretariat in Colombo. The Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) counts 25 full members from South Asia, West Asia, Africa, Southeast Asia, and European territories in the region, plus nine observers. India will chair IONS from the end of 2025. The biennial MILAN naval exercise, hosted by India, reflects the country&rsquo;s SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) vision and Act East policy.
Strengthening Maritime Domain Awareness To enhance maritime security, India has concluded 22 white shipping agreements and established the Information Fusion Centre &ndash; Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) in Gurugram, enabling real-time maritime information sharing.
From SAGAR to MAHASAGAR Marking a decade since the SAGAR doctrine&rsquo;s launch, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the MAHASAGAR (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions) initiative during a 2025 visit to Mauritius. While SAGAR focused on the Indian Ocean, MAHASAGAR expands India&rsquo;s maritime vision to a global scale, prioritising cooperation with the Global South.
Developmental Diplomacy Guided by the principle of Vasudhaivakutumbakam (&ldquo;the world is one family&rdquo;), India&rsquo;s development partnerships through grants, concessional loans, capacity-building and technical aid are tailored to the priorities of partner nations. PM Modi&rsquo;s outreach to Mauritius, Maldives, Trinidad and Tobago, Ghana, and the Philippines reflects this approach.
An Inclusive Indo-Pacific Vision At the 2018 Shangri-La Dialogue, Modi outlined India&rsquo;s Indo-Pacific vision: a free, open, inclusive region with ASEAN centrality, a rules-based order, freedom of navigation, and peaceful dispute resolution. India&rsquo;s Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI), launched in 2019, advances this vision across seven pillars of cooperation. The country&rsquo;s active role in the QUAD and initiatives like FIPIC (Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation), reinforce its strategic presence.
Global South Leadership During its 2023 G20 Presidency, India successfully advocated for the African Union&rsquo;s membership and championed the Global South&rsquo;s voice through the &ldquo;Voice of the Global South&rdquo; summit series.
With deepening security, economic, and developmental links, India&rsquo;s Indo-Pacific strategy blends hard power with inclusive diplomacy, positioning the country as a central pillar of regional stability.
[Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by the Benefit News editorial team and is published directly from the IANS news feed.]
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India boosts Indo-Pacific security role with defence ties, maritime vision, and MAHASAGAR

India Now a Preferred Indo-Pacific Partner

India boosts Indo-Pacific security role with defence ties, maritime vision, and MAHASAGAR

August 10, 2025 | 17:14 IST