Of these considered defence facilities outside the China which would provide PLA military access in case of any operational requirements, four are India’s immediate neighbours -- Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Burma (Myanmar).

Another three of them -- Thailand, Singapore, and Indonesia -- are in the South East Asia, as per the US Department of Defence’s annual report to Congress on “Military and Security Developments Involving the People Republic of China 2023”.

The Beijing is doing it to expand its overseas logistics and basing infrastructure to allow the PLA to project and sustain military power at greater distances, the Pentagon report observed but cautioned that its global network “could disrupt US military operations”.