The MSR is part of the China-led Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) — a massive connectivity undertaking on land and sea, which covers 65 countries.
Liang Haiming, chief economist at the China Silk Road iValley Research Institute in Beijing told The Hindu: “ I just came back from the investigation and study of the BRI in Malaysia.
“I found out that we have already established the China Malaysia port cooperation alliance, comprising of 11 Chinese and six Malaysian ports. Besides, the Straits of Malacca maritime industrial park, among others, is also being set up.”
He added: “From 2013 when it was proposed, the BRI is now developing very fast.”
The Malacca industrial park is part of the giant Malacca Gateway project that China and Malaysia signed last year.
The project includes building three reclaimed islands and developing a fourth natural island. Most of this project will cater to tourism, commercial and housing needs, but one island – Pulau Melaka – has been earmarked to become a maritime activities centre with a container and bulk terminal, shipbuilding and ship repair services, and maritime industrial park.
This will ensure China has a greater foothold on the Straits of Malacca, and in the region.
Some analysts have tied the recent four-day visit of a China submarine to Kota Kinabalu port as an indication of China’s growing military presence in the region and the advancement of its BRI.
China’s Ministry of Defence had said the submarine and support ship arrived at the port for “rest and recreation” after completing an escort mission to the Gulf of Aden and Somalia.
The China Daily, meanwhile, quoted Zhong Feiteng, an expert on Asia-Pacific affairs at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences as saying: “Submarine port visits can only happen when mutual trust between two navies has reached new heights, as submarine operations are very secretive and sensitive.”
A recent report in The Straits Times of Singapore raised questions about the need for added port capacity along the west coast of Malaysia.
It quoted Dr Johan Saravanamuttu of the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies as saying:“There is the strategic element of the Malacca Strait. It always starts with an economic presence, which can then develop into a naval one, because China will be obliged to ensure the safe passage of its commercial ships.”
One logistics player was quoted by the ST as saying: “Because there seems to be no logic to the Malacca deal, many are questioning if this has more to do with military rather than commercial interests.”