30-6-2023 (HANOI) In a historic move, the Indian Navy has dispatched an active-duty missile corvette as a gift to Vietnam, marking the first time India has given a warship to another country. The domestically built corvette, named INS Kirpan, set sail from India’s east coast on Wednesday (Jun 28), according to the navy.
India and Vietnam have been forging stronger ties in recent years, particularly in the realm of defence, driven by mutual concerns over China’s increasing assertiveness. While India has previously provided smaller boats and military equipment to nations like Maldives and Mauritius, and even a submarine to Myanmar, the gift of a corvette to Vietnam holds strategic significance. Vietnam shares a coast along the South China Sea, where multiple countries have overlapping territorial claims, challenging China’s longstanding assertion of sovereignty over the entire region.
China has exhibited sensitivity towards the presence of foreign militaries in the South China Sea for an extended period, making India’s gift of a warship to Vietnam a potentially contentious move. The Indian Navy, however, emphasized that the transfer of the Kirpan demonstrates India’s commitment to bolstering the capacity and capability of its like-minded partners. “This is the maiden occasion of gifting a fully operational corvette by India to any Friendly Foreign Country,” stated the Indian Navy in a released statement.
The decision to gift the warship was announced during the visit of Vietnam’s Defence Minister, General Phan Van Giang, to India earlier this month. The INS Kirpan, commissioned into the Indian Navy in 1991, showcases India’s indigenous design and production capabilities. The corvette is equipped with medium-range and close-range guns, chaff launchers, and surface-to-surface missiles, as disclosed by the navy. However, it remains undisclosed whether the transfer includes the provision of missiles.
On Tuesday, Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu expressed Beijing’s willingness to strengthen high-level communication and cooperation with Hanoi following his meeting with his Vietnamese counterpart. The evolving dynamics in the region, including India’s strategic gesture, are expected to shape the geopolitical landscape of the South China Sea.
