Diplomacy forms the third pillar. India’s policy of multi-alignment—engaging competing regional actors without formal bloc alignment — has enabled functional cooperation across geopolitical divides. In practice, this has translated into relative operational continuity for Indian-flagged energy carriers even during periods of heightened maritime tension.

Maritime power as economic policy

If diplomacy provides flexibility, naval capability provides credibility.

Operation Sankalp, initially launched as a maritime monitoring initiative, has evolved into an active escort and deterrence mission. Indian naval destroyers now accompany commercial vessels through vulnerable waters, signaling both defensive resolve and operational reach.

The integration of surveillance aircraft, helicopters and real-time maritime intelligence has created a layered security architecture designed to counter emerging asymmetric threats, including unmanned aerial systems and covert maritime sabotage. Such measures highlight an emerging reality: economic security in the 21st century increasingly depends upon sustained maritime presence.

The mission also carries a human dimension. Nearly 20,000 Indian seafarers operate within Gulf shipping networks, making naval protection not only a strategic requirement but a responsibility toward citizens embedded within global trade systems.

The economic limits of resilience

Despite strengthened preparedness, India remains linked to global market dynamics. A prolonged crisis in Hormuz would elevate oil prices toward or beyond the $100-per-barrel threshold, intensifying inflationary pressures and expanding the country’s import bill. Currency volatility and rising logistics costs would follow, affecting sectors far removed from energy markets.

Insurance premiums for shipping — often overlooked in public discourse — represent another critical variable. Without credible security guarantees, risk pricing alone could significantly raise the cost of essential imports, embedding geopolitical instability directly into domestic economic life.

Resilience, therefore, mitigates vulnerability but does not eliminate interdependence.

Reimagining trade geography: The IMEC vision

Recognising the structural limits imposed by chokepoints, India’s long-term strategy seeks geographic transformation rather than perpetual risk management. The India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) represents an ambitious attempt to diversify connectivity through integrated port, rail and logistics networks linking South Asia with European markets.

If successfully implemented, the corridor could gradually reduce reliance on single maritime passages and redistribute trade flows across multiple routes. Beyond infrastructure, IMEC reflects a broader strategic ambition: shaping the architecture of global commerce rather than adapting to it.

A maritime moment for India

The Strait of Hormuz encapsulates a defining paradox of contemporary geopolitics. It exposes the vulnerabilities of global interdependence even as it creates opportunities for states capable of combining diplomacy, economic planning and maritime power.

India’s approach — balancing naval assertiveness with diplomatic flexibility and economic diversification — signals the emergence of a more confident middle power navigating an increasingly fragmented international order.

In an era where supply chains have become instruments of strategy and sea lanes determine economic stability, maritime leadership is no longer optional. It is foundational.

The Strait of Hormuz may remain an unavoidable passage today. But India’s evolving posture suggests a nation preparing for a future in which global chokepoints no longer dictate national destiny.

Richard Hay, Special to Gulf News

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Hormuz: India’s shift from vulnerability to strategy