OPINION | India Extends Its Maritime Influence, Opens IFC-IOR Doors to the EU

by Ashu Mann

At a time when global attention was fixed on the sweeping economic and regulatory pact between India and the European Union, a quieter yet more strategically consequential development unfolded beyond the spotlight. New Delhi’s decision to welcome the European Union’s proposal to post a liaison officer at the Information Fusion Centre–Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) marks a decisive shift in how India is shaping the security architecture of the wider Indian Ocean.

For Brussels, this move represents more than a diplomatic foothold. The EU has operated in the region for years under Operation ATALANTA, but its naval presence remains stretched thin across an unpredictable maritime expanse. Europe’s commercial arteries still run through the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea, yet the risk landscape has evolved. Piracy surges sporadically, unregulated fishing fleets blur legal boundaries, and non-state actors increasingly test maritime defenses. In this environment, ships matter, but information matters more. This is where India’s IFC-IOR has emerged as the most reliable and centralized platform for shared maritime awareness.

IFC-IOR: The Indian Ocean’s Information Hub

Established in 2018 and operated by the Indian Navy, IFC-IOR was created on a simple yet transformative principle: no single nation can secure the world’s busiest waterways alone. Rather than directing patrols, the center fuses data such as merchant traffic, suspicious vessel behavior, weather anomalies, and distress signals into a common operational picture accessible to partners.

This approach reflects India’s SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) doctrine, which privileges cooperation over competition and stability over strategic brinkmanship. Over the years, the center has attracted liaison officers from 12 partner countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Japan, Australia, and Singapore. The EU’s entry is therefore not symbolic. It is recognition that IFC-IOR has become the default hub for Indian Ocean maritime awareness.

A Partnership Built in Small, Steady Steps

The EU’s placement of a liaison officer at IFC-IOR did not emerge in isolation. It followed a steady progression of joint operations, dialogues, and at-sea familiarity that matured over several years.

In recent years, Indian and European naval ships have worked more closely in the Gulf of Guinea and the Gulf of Aden, regions where piracy, armed robbery, and opaque vessel movements remain persistent concerns. During this period, the Indian Navy continued its long-standing support to World Food Programme vessels, coordinating escorts and reporting with EUNAVFOR’s Operation ATALANTA.

Momentum accelerated in March 2025 during the fourth EU–India Maritime Security Dialogue, where both sides aligned their assessments of illicit maritime activity and the shifting security environment in the western Indian Ocean. By this point, India and Europe had begun speaking a shared operational language.

The first-ever visit of an ATALANTA Commander to India, Vice Admiral Ignacio Villanueva Serrano in April 2025, added institutional weight to the relationship. His meetings with India’s naval leadership helped translate several proposals into executable plans.

Those plans materialized in June 2025, when the Indian Navy and EUNAVFOR conducted one of their most advanced joint exercises in the Indian Ocean. The drills involved the Italian frigate Antonio Marceglia, the Spanish Reina Sofía, and India’s INS Trikand, supported by air assets from all sides. An Indian maritime patrol aircraft also participated. The focus was clear: counter-piracy, communication procedures, and interoperability.

In September 2025, INS Surat exercised with Italy’s ITS Caio Duilio under Operation ASPIDES. These PASSEX drills were tactically straightforward but symbolically significant, demonstrating that cooperation had become a reflex rather than an exception.

Together, these steady and incremental steps built the trust necessary for Europe to embed itself directly into India’s maritime information ecosystem.

India as a Preferred Security Partner

Europe’s presence at IFC-IOR enhances its situational awareness, but it also signals something larger. India has emerged as a preferred, reliable, and increasingly central partner for countries seeking a stable maritime architecture in the Indo-Pacific. The Indian Navy’s expanding footprint, ranging from humanitarian assistance to anti-piracy missions and rapid-response deployments, has quietly reshaped perceptions of India as a stabilizing force.

By welcoming the EU into IFC-IOR, India reinforces its role as a trusted maritime partner whose systems, operational instincts, and strategic priorities align with the rules-based international order.

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About the Author

Ashu Mann is an Associate Fellow at the Centre for Land Warfare Studies. He was awarded the Vice Chief of the Army Staff Commendation card on Army Day 2025. He is pursuing a PhD from Amity University, Noida, in Defence and Strategic Studies. His research focuses include the India-China territorial dispute, great power rivalry, and Chinese foreign policy.