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自由応募分科会 4 「インド洋をめぐる 21 世紀の国際政治」
報告１
Takenori HORIMOTO (Open University of Japan)
Indian Ocean in India’s foreign policy
Upon entering upon the 21st century, the Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean have drawn high
interests and great attention from major countries, to say the least of littoral states. The
phenomenon is the natural corollary of various significances centering about SLOC (sea line
of communication) of the economy and also security-related issues in the backdrop of
globalization since 1990s.
Needless to say, the Pacific Ocean attracts increasing attention due to Asia’s assumption of
predominant implications of the world economy in the 21st century. In addition, it is
important to take note of close inter-connectivity of the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean
as epitomized by the new coinage of the Indo-Pacific since 2010s. In the past the Pacific
Ocean has been watched and attended to from mainly the angle of Asia-Pacific perspective.
These developments have brought about multiple players such as the United States, India,
China, Japan, Australia, and the ASEAN countries. Among them, probably India would be
the most important country which is geographically situated at the center of the Indian
Ocean lording over it. It would not be overstatement Indian Ocean could not be argued
without India.
Therefore, I would like to delve into the function and role which India aspires and intends to
play in the Indian Ocean with a major reference to the Indian Ocean in the India’s foreign
policy. Of course, such analysis would be insufficient without putting other major countries in
the framework of discussion.
Based upon the above overall framework, I would like to discuss the subject mainly from
three aspects. First, power shift in Asia in the backdrop of relative decline of the US power
and rise of China and India. Perhaps, the main essence of this aspect is how to cope with
China, particularly in the field of security. Second, how the rivalry between India and China
over Indian Ocean: India’s Act East Policy vs China’s OBOR policy. How such rivalry would
develop is the crux of the matter, namely pertaining to stability. Third, how would
Japan-India cooperation be proceeding?
[Reference]
―堀本武功「Ⅳ章インド・南アジア・インド洋・アフガニスタンの将来」(西原正・堀本
武功編『軍事大国化するインド』亜紀書房、2010 年)(212-222 頁)
―堀本武功「第 4 章ルック・ウエスト政策とインド洋政策の模索」(堀本武功『インド第三の
大国へ―〈戦略的自律〉外交の追求―』岩波書店、2015 年) (pp.125-145)
―Horimoto, Takenori (co-authored), “Chapter 2 Japan and the Indo-Pacific” in Chacko,
Priya ed., New Regional Geopolitics in the Indo-Pacific, Routledge, 2016 (pp. 26-42)

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