Kolkata, Aug 9 (IANS) India may have to look back over her shoulder every now and then by the end of this year, with Indonesia procuring an aircraft carrier from Italy.

This will be the first aircraft carrier in India’s vicinity.

What is important is that Indonesia plans to station it in Ratai Bay in Lampung, in the southernmost tip of Sumatra, facing the Sunda Strait.

This is about 850 nautical miles from India’s Great Nicobar Island.

While the carrier Giuseppe Garibaldi has been retired by the Italian Navy and is far from modern, its continuous presence in the region will require monitoring.

According to latest reports, the Garibaldi is expected to reach Indonesia around September 20 and will be part of the country’s Armed Forces Day celebrations on October 5.

The light carrier will be despatched by Italy after removing all armaments.

There is speculation that Indonesia is planning to procure some legacy AV-8B Harrier Jets for vertical take-offs and landings from its flight deck, which is too small to handle any modern aircraft that operate from carriers.

What is worrisome though is the fact that Jakarta plans to launch Turkish-origin Bayraktar TB3 Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAVs) from the Garibaldi.

The carrier is also expected to carry AS-565 Panther helicopters, equipped with anti-submarine capabilities.

While bilateral ties between India and Indonesia are strong and the two countries share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership that involves the procurement of Brahmos and Astra missiles by Jakarta, the presence of an aircraft carrier, so close to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is something that India’s defence establishment is keeping an eye on.

“There are no permanent friends or permanent enemies in the world. We certainly keep a watch on any development that goes on in the neighbourhood and the Garibaldi is no exception,” a senior Ministry of Defence official said on condition of anonymity.

In the past, Indonesia has shown its allegiance towards Pakistan. This happened during the 1965 India-Pakistan War.

Indonesia, which has a strong Navy at that time, had offered to take over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to ease pressure on Pakistan.

Things may have changed over the years, with Indonesia firmly standing by India after Operation Sindoor, but the prospect of an aircraft carrier with UCAVs patrolling the international waters near the Andamans does not look too relishing for security analysts.

“Well, there is nothing that anybody can do if a country wishes to procure an aircraft carrier, but its presence in the Andamans Sea during a conflict with Pakistan may cause some diversion of attention,” one of the analysts said.

–IANS

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