ABSTRACT
The Indo-Pacific is decidedly the new locus of all important economic activity. It is also being seen as the new centre of gravity for strategic competition of the world. One has to keep in mind that the common thread keeping the Indo-Pacific's integrity as a geographic region is the sea. The South China Sea dispute is a case of overlapping and conflicting claims over territory and sovereignty in the Paracel and Spratly island chains, as well as over large areas in the open sea, claimed wholly or in part by China and some others. India's trade with the Asia-Pacific region passes through the South China Sea. Though the South China Sea has only limited potential to satisfy India's energy needs, it has still been courted by the country over the past couple of years, in order to spread its sources across geographies. The geopolitical landscape of the Indo-Pacific in general, and the South China Sea in particular, has for sure changed.
