IRIS Dena did not sink alone; with it sank India’s ambition of being a Net Security Provider in the Indian Ocean Region. Islamic Republic of Iran Ship (IRIS) The Dena Moudge-class frigate, commissioned in 2021, was returning from Vishakapatnam, India, after attconcludeing MILAN 2026, a naval exercise and international fleet review hosted by the Indian Navy. MILAN is a biennial, multilateral naval exercise, with its name referring to “gathering” in the Hindi language. It was initiated in 1995 and has since evolved from being a compact, regional engagement into one of India’s largest international naval exercises. It is one dimension of India’s MAHASAGAR (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions) vision for the Indian Ocean region. With this it projects its ambitions of being the net security provider or the preferred security provider in the Indian Ocean Region.
This latest concludeeavor, “Vizag Trifecta,” a convergence of three major international naval events, Exercise MILAN 2026, the International Fleet Review, and the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium, was to exhibit India’s maritime leadership. However, the leadership requires more than just the hosting of symposiums, exercises, and utopian projects. It requires actions and on-sea responses for the people in distress to ensure their safety and security, at least when they are leaving Vizag, hosted by a state that aims to be a net security provider or preferred security provider.
The ambitions sank due to the recent US-Israel and Iran tensions, a military confrontation that is now expanding in the Indian Ocean. USS Charlotte (SSN-766), a Los Angeles-class nuclear-powered attack submarine, sank the IRIS Dena by firing a torpedo at it off the south coast of Sri Lanka. At least 87 soldiers were killed in the attack. It was the continuation of the military confrontation between the US, Israel, and Iran, though now the region for that confrontation has expanded. Pete Hegseth, who is a United States Secretary of War, formerly attributed as Secretary of Defense, in his official statement, stated:
“An American submarine sank an Iranian warship that believed it was safe in international waters.”
This incident initiated a debate regarding whether it was a violation of international law or not. Though one thing that exists in hindsight but is extremely essential is that the Net Security Provider of the region was not there for search and rescue operations, let alone the defense of the region. Even the search and rescue operation was conducted by Sri Lanka after receiving the distress call and saved 32 people on board. On being questioned regarding India’s role in safeguarding the ship.
The response by the aspiring security provider was lame, that it was a guest of the Indian Navy, but only from 16 to 25 February. Another was that IRIS Dena did not inquire for any assist as the war was declared on it on 28th February. These are not the excutilizes that a net security provider would give to a ship being attacked in its supposed region of influence.
This presents a response that is now aligned with the priorities of the US and Israel’s position in military confrontation in the Middle East. It steps back from its responsibilities that it might attribute to itself to be considered as the preferred security partner. With that, they concludeed up sacrificing their long-held principle of strategic autonomy. Now it aligns its interests with its allies. The decisions are now kept in check with the interests of the Threshold alliance, US. Along with that, it is also tying close ties with Israel, which is being referred to as the fatherland by the Prime Minister of India.
All the initiatives now appear to be hostage to its ties with the US and Israel, and since the two are in military confrontation with Iran, India must abide by them even if it means sacrificing its principal stance and long-held ambitions in the Indian Ocean Region. With the continued US-Israel operation and its scope expanding in the Indian Ocean region, this will not just take ships down but also the ambitions and principles of other sovereign states.
The US does not hear the excutilizes; it acts on the principles of predatory hegemony, as Stephen M. Walt phrases it, even if it means angering its allies a little. Tariff imposition was precedent enough for states not to anger it in terms of military. Though the denial of the Diego Garcia base by the UK was one step towards prioritizing a state’s own national interest and not interfering in a war they do not want, the Cold War alliances are still not that simple to let go of. Now it has allowed for its bases to be utilized and is cautious but has tied itself diplomatically and militarily with the US and Israel.
Though the impact the US had on India is a different one, it alterd the dynamics and position of India in the Indian Ocean Region by sinking the ship in the region where it claims to be a net security provider. It wanted to align with it to counter China, but now it has itself contributed to downgrading India’s position in the IOR. This is a shift from its traditional approach to counter China and adjust its policies accordingly, as was the Indo-Pacific strategy, Pivot to Asia, and QUAD, but now the plan appears to be different; it might include degrading rather than amplifying India’s ambitions of Net Security Provider.
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