Yuan Wang 5

Yuan Wang 5

#GS-02 International Relations

For Prelims

Yuan Wang 5:

  • Yuan Wang 5 is a third-generation vessel of the Yuan Wang series that entered service in 2007.
  • This series of ships were aimed at creating “space tracking ships involved in supporting the manned space programme“.
  • It has the ability to track satellites and intercontinental missiles.
  • In August 2020, the docking of Yuan Wang 5 at Hambantota in Sri Lanka had created a major diplomatic situation between India and Sri Lanka.

 

For Mains

Chinese Presence in Indian Ocean:

  • It has been reported that, the Chinese presence in IOR includes four to six Navy ships, research vessels and fishing vessels apart from 60odd ships of extra-regional forces.
  • The Chinese presence in the Indian Ocean began in 2008 under the garb of anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden.
  • They have since maintained continuous presence in the region, even deploying nuclear attack submarines (SSN) on occasions.
  • China had since set up a military base in Djibouti and developed several dual-use ports in the IOR in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Pakistan and other countries.

India’s Concerns:

  • There had been a steady rise in the deployment of Chinese research vessels in the IOR.
  • The research or survey vessels have powerful equipment for snooping and gathering a range of data.
  • In a similar incident in November, another research vessel, Yuan Wang 6, entered the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) coinciding with a planned Indian missile launch.
  • The movement of Yuan Wang-6 came barely 20 days after India conducted the test firing of a Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) from INS Arihant.
  • In 2019, Indian Navy warships had chased away a suspected Chinese spy vessel, Shi Yan 1, purportedly doing research activity close to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.