The past decade has seen a radical eastward shift of naval power, with the marked decline in Western economic prosperity resulting in major erosion of the northern hemisphere's naval forces.
As the sun sets in the West, innovative, low-cost base Asian economies are booming in the East, enabling many nations in the region to expand and upgrade naval capabilities in pursuit of maritime territorial integrity and national prestige.
Analysts reporting on this trend have inevitably focused, so far, on the exponential growth of the Indian and Chinese fleets. Other Asian maritime forces, though, are now also making their mark.
One prime example is the Bangladesh Navy (BN).
Miracle on the Bengal?
Financed by Bangladesh's spectacular emergence as a cheap manufacturing centre, the BN is currently surging ahead in both size and capability.
Long-established core duties of the BN include patrolling the Bay of Bengal and the many inlets of the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta, as well as combating the riverine activities of the Harkat-ul-jihad-al-Ismali terrorist movement. The force has a current working strength of 15,000 personnel and about 70 major vessels.
Last year in March the United Nations International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) supported Bangladesh's claims to a 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and to a substantial area of the continental shelf beyond it. The ITLOS ruling effectively thwarted Myanmar's claims to parts of these areas and cleared the way for Dhaka to proceed with long-delayed hydrocarbon exploration projects.
The task of maintaining EEZ security is now, therefore, firmly on the BN agenda, a commitment that requires the commissioning of a tranche of new warships into a fleet that has previously been largely dominated by ageing secondhand British vessels. China, a heavy investor in Bangladeshi manufacturing, has since emerged as a major facilitator of BN's modernisation and rearmament.
Fleet acquisitions and upgrades
In 2012, China's Wuchang shipyard launched a pair of 64.2 metre, 650 tonne missile-armed attack craft for the BN. Powered by Pielstick diesels and capable of speeds of up to 28 knots, the main armament of these craft are two twin launchers with a compact 38-kilometre range, a C-704 surface-to-surface missile (SSM) and a 76 mm gun. Both ships arrived in Bangladesh earlier this year.
Also anticipated from China this year is a pair of ex-PLA Navy Jianghu III frigates, the former 'Huangshi' and 'Wuhu'. These two 1980s vintage warships are being refitted in China prior to transfer, with the work to include the installation of modern 76mm guns. They are likely to retain their main armament of four C-802 SSMs, with a range of 120 kilometres.
Recent reports indicate that two 1,340 tonne Type 056 corvettes are now under construction for the BN at Wuchang, due for delivery by 2015. Two Z-9C anti-submarine helicopters, recently ordered from China, will probably operate from these ships.
An important force multiplier under construction for the BN will be an 80 metre fleet support tanker. Indigenously built at Bangladesh's Ananda Shipyard, this vessel is to be equipped with the latest British "replenishment at sea" gear and is due to be delivered by the end of the year. Once in service, it will be capable of refuelling two warships simultaneously.
Already in BN service is 'Padma', the first of five new indigenously built 50.4 metre offshore patrol vessels. Constructed at the Khulna Shipyard in Bangladesh in collaboration with Hudong Shipyard in China, these 23 knot vessels mount an armament of three 37mm and two 20mm cannons and are set for an important role in securing Bangladesh's EEZ.
A surprise addition to the BN fleet this May was the 3,300 tonne helicopter-capable 'Jarvis'. A former United States Coast Guard HAMILTON-class cutter, the 'Jarvis' is to be renamed 'Somudro Joy' and will be the biggest ship ever to serve Bangladesh.
The vessel is due to be rearmed in Bangladesh with C-802 SSMs and a Chinese air defence system. The 'Somudro Joy' will be joined next year by another HAMILTON-class vessel, and together these two ships will replace the old British LEOPARD-class frigates 'Abu Bakr' and 'Ali Hade'.
Looking to the future
According to the BN vice admiral Zahir Uddin Ahmed, two corvettes have been ordered from South Korea and will join the Bangladeshi fleet in 2016. Also on the horizon, he says, and of considerable regional strategic significance, is Bangladesh's first submarine. The sub is likely to be an ex-Chinese MING or SONG boat, and will be purchased by 2019.
Reputedly an efficient force with a well-educated officer cadre, the Bangladesh Navy should be able to successfully and quickly negotiate the learning curve required to operate its new platforms effectively. In tandem with a rapidly flourishing domestic economy, the Bangladesh Navy is set to become a modern force to be reckoned with within Asian waters.
Trevor Hollingsbee
