NEW DELHI—India’s navy will open a third air base in the far-off Andaman and Nicobar islands on Jan. 24 to beef up surveillance of Chinese ships and submarines entering the Indian Ocean through the nearby Malacca Straits, military officials and experts said.
New Delhi has grown concerned over the presence of China’s larger navy in its neighborhood, as well as the network of commercial ports Beijing is building in an arc stretching from Sri Lanka to Pakistan that India fears could become naval outposts.
