Until the 1990s, India's only disturbed land border was with China. By the end of the 20s, this border became even more undisturbed than the Chinese border.th The Indian Ocean became India's new border due to China's increased naval activities in the century. The India-Pakistan borders have been confrontational since 1947. They fought three declared wars in 1948, 1965 and 1971 and an undeclared Kargil war in 1999. The 1971 war saw some naval encounters not seen in previous wars. The most significant operations were the sinking of INS Kukri and PNS Ghazi, the naval blockade of Pakistan, and India taking the war closer to Pakistan's coast and attacking the Karachi port on 5 December 1971.
Advances in civil and military technology across the world in the last few decades have transformed the concept, character and conduct of wars. Surface, sub-surface and air space in the maritime domain are an integrated battle space. In the competition for battlefield dominance and defence of the centre of gravity, the kinetic value arising from the dynamics of 'Anti-Access (A2)' and 'Area Denial (AD)' capabilities are key indicators.
On the maritime front, China has surpassed India in A2/AD capabilities. China has the world's largest navy by number of ships and is second only to the US Navy by tonnage. China's naval aviation has grown at a doubling pace since 2000. It now has the second largest carrier fleet, with two operational carriers and one awaiting commissioning. The first carrier LIAONING was commissioned in 2012; ShandongSecond carrier in 2019 and third flat deck 80,000 tons Fujian (Type 003) This aircraft with an electromagnetic catapult and arresting equipment is undergoing tests to join the fleet in late 2025 or early 2026. Type 004, Under construction, possibly with nuclear propulsion. China plans to build six aircraft carriers by 2030/2035. HI Sutton, an online based open source intelligence site reported on 15 May 2024 about the world's first dedicated drone carrier being built by China.