As India positions itself among the world’s top three economies in the coming two decades, its long-term ambitions will increasingly be shaped not only by its continental prowess but by its command of the seas. In an era where over 90 per cent of global trade moves by ocean, the strength of a nation’s maritime presence defines its economic resilience, supply-chain security, and geopolitical reach.
From Continental Power to Maritime Nation
For much of its modern history, India’s strategic posture has been defined by its land borders and continental engagements. Yet, as highlighted by global logistics leaders like Keith Svendsen, the next stage of India’s economic ascent depends on “speed of execution”, the ability to translate industrial and technological dynamism into maritime infrastructure and logistics integration. India’s ports, shipbuilding, and shipping services must now evolve from regional facilitators into global enablers.
India has already embarked on a series of maritime reforms through initiatives such as Sagarmala and the Maritime India Vision 2030. Samir Saran aptly notes that these initiatives have turned India’s coastline into “a strategic anchor for global maritime logistics,” reflecting the government’s broader SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) vision. The challenge, however, lies not merely in expanding port capacity but in fostering integration, connecting industrial clusters, export zones, and hinterland corridors into seamless global value chains. India’s ports handle nearly 95 per cent of its trade by volume, but their competitiveness still lags behind major Asian and European hubs. Streamlining approval systems, enhancing multimodal connectivity, and incentivising private participation will be critical to bridging that gap.
Both Svendsen and Saran converge on a vital theme: sustainability. Maritime de-carbonisation is no longer optional; it is an imperative. As the global shipping industry pivots toward alternative fuels and carbon-neutral technologies, India must position itself as a manufacturing and innovation hub for green maritime solutions. Developing domestic shipbuilding capabilities, expanding renewable port energy use, and creating financial mechanisms for sustainable shipping, such as India’s Maritime Development Fund and Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Policy, are steps in the right direction. They also align India with emerging global norms under the IMO’s decarbonisation agenda, reinforcing its role as both a trade and environmental leader.
As Svendsen observes, “regulatory and industry issues are not uncommon, but decisive resolutions are what matter most.” Maritime diplomacy, agreements on port management, shipbuilding cooperation, and legal harmonisation will define India’s ability to navigate global trade complexities. Moreover, as Saran argues, India’s maritime posture must balance its security imperatives with cooperative regionalism. SAGAR embodies this philosophy by framing the Indian Ocean not as an arena of contestation but as a commons of shared prosperity. Extending that vision toward Africa and Latin America could transform India from a regional maritime actor into a global maritime stakeholder.
India and Latin America: The Next Maritime Frontier
Looking ahead, the next two decades will demand that India extend its maritime presence far beyond the Indian Ocean. Latin America represents a largely untapped frontier for Indian trade and maritime diplomacy. Nations such as Peru, Chile, Brazil, and Argentina offer abundant reserves of copper, lithium, iron, and agricultural commodities, resources that India’s growing industries and expanding population will require in massive quantities.Within this emerging geography, Peru occupies a uniquely strategic position. Situated at the heart of South America’s Pacific coastline, it offers direct maritime access to Asia while maintaining strong trade links across the Andean and Amazonian corridors. In this context, the proposed megaport of Corío, near Arequipa, stands out as a transformative opportunity both for Peru’s economic projection and for India’s long-term maritime strategy. Unlike the Chancay port, Corío could become a platform of independent cooperation between Peru and India, fostering a diversified presence of Asian partners in South America.
For India, participation in Corío,whether through port investment, joint logistics ventures, or shipline partnerships would ensure a sovereign and strategic foothold in the Pacific Basin, enabling direct access to Latin American mineral and agricultural supply chains without intermediary routes. From a geoeconomic perspective, such a project aligns perfectly with India’s Act East–Engage West vision, expanding the country’s trade corridors toward the Pacific while consolidating maritime links with Africa and the Indian Ocean Rim. It would also allow India to test its maritime-industrial capabilities abroad: applying its growing expertise in port management, digital logistics, and green shipping to a region seeking diversification from traditional partners. For Peru, cooperation with India would mean technological transfer, new financing sources, and the emergence of a multipolar Pacific trade architecture.
Corío could thus serve not only as a logistics hub, but as a symbol of a balanced maritime partnership between emerging democracies, one founded on openness, sustainability, and mutual benefit. By anchoring a presence in ports such as Corío, India would project its maritime diplomacy into the Western Hemisphere for the first time in modern history. It would also send a clear signal: that the Indo-Pacific is no longer just an eastern concept, but a truly transoceanic reality connecting both sides of the world’s greatest ocean.
To conclude, India’s maritime destiny will shape its economic and geopolitical future. The coming twenty years will test its ability to integrate sustainability, strategic foresight, and global partnerships into a coherent oceanic policy. If India can merge the pragmatism of logistics leaders like Svendsen with the strategic vision of thinkers like Saran, it will not merely trade across the world’s oceans: it will help define them.
The writer is the Peruvian Ambassador to India