Rear Admiral Jack Raymond Steer, Chief of New Zealand Navy, also welcomed US’ rebalancing of its naval assets to Asia-Pacific region.
“The Chinese will always say one thing and other people will have a different view. The fact that China has been contributing for many years to anti-piracy group is a good thing because more nations contribute, the better it is,” Steer said.
Talking about the Chinese deployment of “submarines and other ships” into Indian Ocean, he told PTI in an interview that “one view could be that China is trying to teach themselves, trying to make sure that they can actually do this because for a long time, they have not gone very far away from mainland China. What is the actual underline thinking, I don’t know”.
Interestingly, China’s recent assertive white paper on defence talks about enhancing its naval reach for the first time to “open seas protection” far from its shores.
Asked about China’s ongoing dispute in South China Sea with other countries in the region, the New Zealand Navy chief said his country does not take a position on who is right and wrong.
“What we do want and recommend is that the nations involved find a resolution that is transparent, peaceful and in accordance to international law,” he said underlining that he was not taking any body’s side.
“From our perspective, there is lot of trade, relationship around South China Sea and Indian Ocean,” he said.
India remains wary of China’s military intentions, protesting two visits last year by Chinese submarines to Colombo. China claims its deployment is part of anti-piracy operations.
The Defence Ministry annual report for 2014-15, released earlier this year, had sounded an alarm over increasing Chinese activities in the Indian Ocean region even as it called for peaceful resolution to territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
It said that India remains conscious and watchful of the implications of Beijing’s “increasing military profile in our immediate and extended neighbourhood, as well as the development of strategic infrastructure by China in border areas”. .
PTI