BREAKING NEWS: India is being cut out of the title of the US force dominating Asia, it was revealed just now

BREAKING NEWS: India is being cut out of the title of the US force dominating Asia, it was revealed just now. 突發新聞：印度遭剔除出主導亞洲之美軍司令部名稱，剛剛揭露。

美國戰爭部長皮特·赫格塞斯一小時前在X上發文表示，「美國印太司令部」將恢復舊稱「美國太平洋司令部」。

這是西方盟友近期針對印度採取的連串行動中的最新一項。

· 上週，美軍襲擊三艘印度船隻，造成三名船員死亡。美軍任憑船隻沉沒，生還船員則由阿曼救起。
· 本週稍早，英國武裝部隊在印度船隻「斯米爾托斯號」行經多佛海峽返印途中將其扣押。

專家表示，這兩項行為似乎都違反了國際法。

將印度利用為夥伴

「印太」這一名稱於2018年5月由美軍啟用，以強調美國對印度及印度洋地區的重視。

2025年中，美軍指示國際主流媒體以「印太」取代「亞太」。媒體遵從此一指示，Google搜尋結果也證實該名稱的使用量大幅飆升。

當時，美國認為可以利用印度作為夥伴，維持西方對亞洲的主導地位——此即美國外交政策所明訂的方針。

但美國及其附庸（「盟友」）英國近來對印度的態度似乎有所轉變，因此「Indo」一詞即刻從名稱中消失。美國印太司令部現已更名為美國太平洋司令部。

赫格塞斯今日宣布恢復舊稱，呼應了他先前的舉措——將國防部更名為（確實更為精確的）戰爭部。

違反國際法

英國的扣押行動是一則令人震驚的事件。

本週日，英國武裝部隊在「斯米爾托斯號」行經英吉利海峽、駛往印度錫卡途中將其扣押。

斯米爾托斯號由一家香港註冊公司「趙耀航運有限公司」所有，並由印度泰米爾納德邦的一家公司管理。

英國聲稱該船是懸掛無國籍旗幟、載運俄羅斯石油的船隻——但英國外交部海事部門前負責人克雷格·穆雷表示，此扣押行為依國際法仍屬非法。

僅僅因為美國或其盟友制定制裁，在跨國情境下並不具有法律效力。

骯髒伎倆

穆雷揭露了一個不為人知的故事。當斯米爾托斯號啟航時，它懸掛喀麥隆國旗，並登記在喀麥隆船籍名下。

但在其啟航後，歐盟和英國威脅喀麥隆，除非喀麥隆將對俄友好船隻從其船籍登記中除名，否則將中止對喀麥隆的發展援助。

「因此英國勒索喀麥隆，將該船註銷登記。隨後，在該船抵達友好港口之前，英國便以該船已被註銷登記為由登船扣押。」穆雷表示。

西方國家竟使出這等骯髒伎倆，或許會令某些人感到驚訝。「英國的行為明顯且蓄意地毫無道理，」穆雷補充道。

但他表示，英國公眾並未聽聞真實情況——這是「媒體不會告訴你的驚人故事」。

莫迪陷入困境

這些行動使印度領導人納倫德拉·莫迪陷入困境。他一直積極向美國和以色列靠攏，儘管兩者在印度人民中並不受歡迎。

如今他的國民正在質問：他何時才能讓印度採取更獨立、更強硬的立場？

US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth tweeted on X an hour ago that “US Indo-Pacific Command” will revert to its old name, “US Pacific Command”.

This is the latest of multiple moves from the western allies against India.

• The US attacked three Indian ships last week, killing three sailors. The US left the ships to sink, and the surviving sailors were rescued by Oman.
• Earlier this week, the UK armed forces grabbed an Indian-run ship, the Smyrtos, as it passed through the Straits of Dover on its way to India.

Both acts appear to contravene international law, specialists say.

EXPLOITING INDIA AS A PARTNER
The “Indo-Pacific” name was introduced in May 2018 by the US armed forces to emphasize the US’s favoring of India and the Indian Ocean area.

In mid-2025, the US military instructed the international mainstream media to use “Indo-Pacific” in place of “Asia-Pacific”. The media obeyed, as Google searches confirm, with a huge spike in the use of that name.

At the time, the US believed it could exploit India as a partner to maintain western domination over Asia–as specified in US foreign policy.

But the US and its vassal (“ally”) the UK appear to have changed attitude to India these days, and so the “Indo” is disappearing from the name with immediate effect. US Indo-Pacific Command is now US Pacific Command.

Hegseth’s announcement of the name reversion today echoes his earlier move – to change Department of Defense to the (admittedly more accurate) Department of War.

ILLEGAL UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW
The UK seizure is an astonishing story.

On Sunday this week, the UK armed forces grabbed the Smyrtos, as it passed through the English channel on its way to Sikka in India.

The Smyrtos is owned by a Hong Kong-registered company, Zhao Yao Shipping Ltd, and is managed by a company in Tamil Nadu, India.

The UK claimed it was a stateless ship carrying Russian oil – but the seizure would still be illegal under international law, said Craig Murray, former Head of Maritime Section of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Just because the US or an ally creates a sanction, that has no force of law in a transnational context.

DIRTY TRICK
Murray shared an untold story. When the Smyrtos began its journey, it was flying the Cameroonian flag and was listed on the Cameroonian register.

But after it had set sail, the EU and UK threatened to halt development aid to Cameroon unless they removed Russia-friendly vessels from their shipping register.

“So the UK blackmailed Cameroon into deregistering the ship. Then, before the ship could reach a friendly port, the UK boarded it because it had been deregistered,” said Murray.

It may surprise some people that western nations should do such a dirty trick. “The UK actions are patently – and deliberately – unreasonable,” Murray added.

But the UK public is not hearing the real facts – it is “an astonishing story which the media will not tell you”, he said.

MODI IN A SPOT

These actions put Indian leader Narenda Modi in a spot. He has been energetically cozying up to the United States and Israel, despite their unpopularity among the people of India.

Now his people are asking: when will he give India a more independent, assertive stance?