Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri presented India's views on new maritime security challenges at the 22nd IISS Manama Dialogue Regional Security Summit in Bahrain. He spoke at the fifth plenary session, titled "Maritime Security at an Inflection Point," according to The Public World.
Key points
- Mr Misri said maritime security is a shared international responsibility and asked for diplomacy over conflict.
- He stressed the need to protect commercial shipping and seafarers and to uphold international law, especially UNCLOS.
- India voiced concern over disruptions in key waterways such as the Strait of Hormuz, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
- The three-day Dialogue brought together ministers and senior officials from many countries.
What India said at the Dialogue
In his address, Mr Misri called for cooperation over confrontation. He said the safety of commercial shipping, the protection of seafarers and respect for international law, particularly the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), must be given priority.
The report says India's position reflects worry about trouble in strategically important sea routes, including the Strait of Hormuz, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Instability in these corridors can disrupt global trade and energy supplies, raise transport and insurance costs, and put extra economic pressure on developing countries.
Why it matters to seafarers
Maritime security, the report notes, is not only about guarding ships and shipping lanes. It also means dealing with piracy, attacks on commercial vessels, trafficking and other cross-border threats. Countries also need to improve maritime domain awareness, information-sharing, surveillance and coordination.
For people who work at sea, these issues bear directly on the safety of the routes they sail. The explicit mention of protecting seafarers in India's message is therefore relevant to crews working on merchant ships in these regions.
India has a long coastline and depends on the Indian Ocean for trade and energy security. The report says safe and open sea lanes are essential for its economic growth and for regional stability. India has consistently backed an inclusive approach built on international cooperation, respect for international law and peaceful settlement of disputes.
Other speakers and the way forward
The session was chaired by Dr Bastian Giegerich, Director-General and Chief Executive of the IISS. Other speakers were Vice Admiral Fahd bin Abdullah Al Ghufaili of Saudi Arabia, Singapore's Senior Minister of State for Defence Zaqy Mohamad, and Rear Admiral Yannick Bossu, Joint Commander of French Forces in the Indian Ocean.
The Dialogue gave participating countries a chance to exchange views on changing maritime threats and to look at joint ways of protecting freedom of navigation, seafarers and international shipping routes. The source does not mention any specific agreement or follow-up action.
India's central message, according to the report, is that the oceans should remain spaces of cooperation, connectivity and shared prosperity, and not arenas of conflict.
