Why in news
The Chinese research vessel Xiang Yang Hong 03 is entering the Indian Ocean and headed to Maldives.
According to Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) observers and maritime tracking portals.
Official sources acknowledged the development but did not comment on it.
The destination — Male — is noteworthy given the moratorium on foreign research vessels by Sri Lanka and the ongoing friction between India and Maldives over Indian troops stationed there.
There has been a steady rise in the deployment of Chinese research vessels in the Indian Ocean Region.
Xiang Yang Hong 03
XIANG YANG HONG 03 (IMO: 9779680) is a Research/Survey Vessel that was built in 2016 (8 years ago) and is sailing under the flag of China.
Ship’s carrying capacity is 1676 t DWT and her current draught is reported to be 6 meters.
Her length overall (LOA) is 99.8 meters and her width is 17.8 meters.
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