The Israel-Hamas fighting continues unabated with the former is gaining fresh ground in South Gaza and West Bank after destroying Hamas resistance in North Gaza. The latter, though decimated by relentless bombing by the Israeli Defence Forces, are adopting “sophisticated tactics to target Israeli forces throughout the Gaza Strip” and claim to have even “filled a tunnel under the [Israeli] cantonment with explosives and detonated it”.

In the north, Lebanese Hezbollah are attacking Israeli border towns and, at sea, Houthis, who have come out openly in support of the Hamas, are attacking-hijacking international shipping between the Red Sea- Bab el Mandab strait-Gulf of Aden region, particularly those ships that are linked to the Israelis. The US warships in the region have successfully downed at least six drones belonging to the Houthis.

Interestingly, the US had designated actors currently supporting Hamas and fighting against Israel, as ‘Axis of Resistance’ in 2002. The tagging first came to be part of the US’ strategic lexicon after President George W. Bush labelled North Korea, Iraq and Iran and “States like these, and their terrorist allies, constitute an axis of evil” and are “arming to threaten the peace of the world”.

The ‘Axis of Evil’ appears to be back into limelight at two levels. First, proxy militant and insurgent groups throughout the region (Palestine, Yemen, Lebanon, Iraq and Syria) who are essentially non-State actors are being supported by Iran, though denied by Tehran. They are fighting against Israel and the US, and Washington has warned Tehran to not enter into the ongoing fighting. General Charles Q. Brown, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was unequivocal and had warned Iran very early during the Israel-Hamas war to “Not to get involved…We do not want this to broaden and the idea is for Iran to get that message loud and clear,”

Second, at the State level, there is also now a growing concern about the evolving alliance between China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea which, both the Republicans and Democrats agree, the US “needs to stand up to” and “not try to do business with them.” In August 2023 former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, in her Republican presidential primary campaign cautioned that “We have to always remember [that] a win for Russia is a win for China. And we can never let that axis of evil gather any more momentum,”; however it needs to be pointed out that “there isn’t apparently a single instance of Biden or top administration officials using the phrase, but that doesn’t mean it’s not catching on”.

On their part, China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea have condemned Israeli invasion on the Hamas-Palestinian people and targeted the US of openly supporting Israel in the UN as also by providing it military hardware for the war.

A sophisticated consensual approach (bilateral and trilateral) signals the growing convergences among these ‘Axis of Resistance’ States. At the bilateral level, China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership has manifest into political and strategic trust between the two sides which has been further consolidated after the Russia-Ukraine war. Here again, the US had warned China not to arm Russia and fuel the war which attracted rebuttal from Beijing - “It’s the U.S., and not China, that has been incessantly supplying weapons to the battlefield, and the U.S. is not qualified to issue any orders to China,” and “China will continue firmly standing on the side of dialogue and the side of peace.”

Second, at the trilateral level, China, Russia and Iran have been quite active in the Indian Ocean and conducted naval exercises in north Arabian Sea. After their January 2023 naval exercises, the three navies held 5-day military exercise called "Security Bond-2023" in Gulf of Oman. The third naval maneuvers will be held in waters off the Jask region in Oman where “large naval units with high capacity will be deployed by the end of the year”. According to commander of the Iranian Navy, Rear Admiral Shahram Irani, “The expected arrival of large ships will lead Iranian authorities to create "a larger maritime area in the Konark area", in the province of Sistan and Baluchistan.

Third, there is an attempt to bring in a new partner i.e. Myanmar. The Chinese engagements with the Myanmar military is well known and Russia has not missed the opportunity to build strategic relations with Naypyidaw. Myanmar's military imported nearly US$ 1 billion worth of weapons and over 60 percent were sourced from Russia (US$ 400 million) and China (US$ 260 million). During the last few weeks, both Russian and Chinese navies have held naval exercises with the Myanmar Navy in the Bay of Bengal.

The ‘Axis of Resistance’ can potentially create complications for US as well as its partners such as India who has cordial relations with both Russia and Iran. However, according to Indian foreign minister, New Delhi is in a unique position to have cultivated a “large “portfolio” of international relationships” with multiple partners on the world stage and “it’s natural for a country to make the best of it,”

Dr. Vijay Sakhuja is associated with Kalinga International Foundation, New Delhi and is Emeritus Professor of Research, SoA Center for Integrated Maritime Studies and Research (SOACIMSR), Siksha 'O' Anusandhan University, Bhuvneshwar, Odisha, India.