Visit by Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan to the Maldives, 3 to 4 September 2019

Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan is currently in the Maldives to attend the fourth Indian Ocean Conference (IOC) and make a bilateral visit to the Maldives in conjunction with the IOC. At the IOC, Minister Balakrishnan emphasised the importance of preserving an open and inclusive international order, and strengthening economic, aviation and digital connectivity in an evolving political landscape. The full transcript of Minister Balakrishnan’s remarks at the IOC is at Annex.

As part of his bilateral visit to the Maldives, Minister Balakrishnan called on Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. During the call, Minister Balakrishnan and President Solih reaffirmed the strong friendship between Singapore and the Maldives.

Minister Balakrishnan also met Maldives Minister for Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid and Maldives Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed, where they discussed potential areas for further cooperation between Singapore and the Maldives.

Minister Balakrishnan returns to Singapore this evening.

Caption: Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan speaking at the 4th Indian Ocean Conference
[Photo credit: India Foundation]

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ANNEX

EDITED TRANSCRIPT OF REMARKS BY MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS DR VIVIAN BALAKRISHNAN AT THE 4^TH INDIAN OCEAN CONFERENCE (IOC), 3 SEPTEMBER 2019

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih of the Maldives

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe of Sri Lanka

Minister for External Affairs of India S Jaishankar

Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Maldives Abdulla Shahid

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

It is a pleasure to be here for the fourth consecutive year of the Indian Ocean Conference. I say fourth consecutive year because I have attended every single one of them. Singapore, Colombo, Hanoi and now here.

I should also say that as I look back on these four conferences, I remember with great fondness and sadness, the former Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. She was a guiding light, an inspiration, an energetic dynamo for this conference. And I’m sure many of you here will also recall her contributions. She believed in discourse and she spared no effort.

When the Indian Ocean Conference was first convened in 2016, there were already signs that the existing international order was beginning to fray at the edges. The collective commitment to international security and multilateralism had started to waver. And, to add to this, the ongoing evolution of the fourth industrial revolution, and the changes it has demanded of our own citizens, has led to the emergence, in many countries including our own, of populism, nationalism, and anti-globalisation.

Since 2016, these trends in fact have worsened. The effects are clear and visible. We watch with anxiety rising military tensions; major disruptions to trade and our supply chains; and indeed a deep uncertainty about the future of international multilateral institutions. Two of the world’s biggest powers are engaged in a destructive trade war. And we are struggling to manage flashpoints related to competition for dwindling global resources. As the world’s major powers become increasingly assertive of their own interests, the hitherto hard-won consensus on international rules and norms is breaking down in front of our own eyes.

The countries in the Indian Ocean that depend on open trade and freedom of navigation for survival have to contend with this increased uncertainty. And we are the first to feel the effects of these shifts in the international environment – and quite frankly we are also going to be among the first to suffer the consequences.

Climate change

On top of all these changes on the geo-strategic front, our physical environment is also facing an existential crisis due to climate change. 

We all know the Indian Ocean is getting warmer. Sea levels are rising, and every year, we witness a successive new record in terms of warming temperatures. And we know that these rising temperatures mean an unsustainable environment for the plankton, which in turn affects fish; eventually this means less fish for fishing and food for human beings. The beautiful coral reefs, and we are here in the Maldives, home to some of the most beautiful corals in the world – these corals reefs are being bleached and are dying. This does not bode well for all of us.

The Indian Ocean is home to thousands of islands and atolls. The Maldives alone accounts for about 1,200 of these, and I don’t need to remind the audience or the residents here that each one of these is under threat. We are right now standing in the world’s lowest-lying nation. 80 percent of these islands are less than a metre above sea level. And if sea levels rise by 1 or 1.5 metres by the end of the century, a country like the Maldives could lose up to 77 percent of their land by the turn of the century.

This must therefore spur us into action. This is an urgent situation and we need to persist in our commitment to implement the hard-wrought Paris Agreement on Climate Change, which I would add, the Maldives and Singapore as fellow members of AOSIS (Alliance of Small Island States) and small states, worked very hard to arrive at that global consensus. And yet we know that the global consensus, even on climate change, is also under threat.

A focused response

Much has changed since we first met in 2016. And we are dealing with evolving complex issues, and my point today is that we need more than ever before to rally together for our collective survival.

In Hanoi last year, I mentioned three key principles to guide our cooperation in the Indian Ocean. The first was an open and inclusive regional and international architecture, grounded in ASEAN centrality. The second was for all of us to have a clear economic agenda, which in turn would support free trade. And we have to do this in order to generate economic growth and good jobs for our people. The third point was that we still need a rules-based world order. These are the fundamentals that have been the formula for peace and prosperity in the Indian Ocean for the last seven decades, and still remain relevant today.

And we need to translate these principles into actions even as we face this evolving situation. I’m aware that the Indian Ocean is a collection of geographically and very culturally diverse states. However, we all share a common strategic imperative, a common conviction in the factors that promote growth, and a common recognition of the conditions that we need to thrive.

Let me share just two points on how we can take ownership of our own developmental agenda and growth, and how we create a more conducive environment for prosperity.

Managing changes in the political landscape

The Indian Ocean’s economic potential and strategic location have made us very attractive partners for larger countries further afield. And we are being courted, for better or for worse, by one side or the other. And these interrelated relationships will shape and define the politics of our region.

How should we respond to this evolving political landscape? I think our answer should be to strengthen, to reinforce, and where necessary, reform our multilateral institutions and mechanisms, and most important of all, uphold a rules-based world order.

Let me draw the example of ASEAN, since the majority of ASEAN member states are in fact part of the Indian Ocean family. We in ASEAN have always guarded against being forced to make invidious choices and thereby preventing Southeast Asia from becoming an arena for great power rivalry, or an arena for proxy wars. This same imperative, I believe, applies to the Indian Ocean. Fortunately, when we look back on the history of the Indian Ocean, it has never been an arena for large-scale warfare. I believe all of us want to keep it that way.

Connectivity

The next point I want to make is on connectivity. We believe it is key for us to capitalise on the opportunities of the new economy.

Indian Ocean ports are well-connected by maritime trade routes, and the projects like the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway, which enhances overland connections. Air connectivity is vital to tourism, and an important driver of economic growth for many of us in this region. I do not really need to make that argument in the Maldives. With one-third of the world’s population here in the Indian Ocean, the potential for us to grow intra and inter-regional tourism is massive.

And the leaders of ASEAN and India recognise this potential. And that’s why in January 2018, India and ASEAN set out the Delhi Declaration on our collective vision for ASEAN and India to strengthen aviation and maritime connectivity, including through the expeditious conclusion of the ASEAN-India Air Transport Agreement and the ASEAN-India Maritime Transport Agreement. Singapore is also pleased to have just signed an Open Skies Agreement with the Maldives during President Solih’s State Visit to Singapore just two months ago. We will continue to work with our partners to bring the two regions ever closer together and to realise the economic potential within. 

Similarly, we need to re-affirm our commitment to economic connectivity. Trade is the lifeblood that sustains Indian Ocean nations. 80 percent of the world’s maritime oil trade flows through these sea lanes. The 12 African Indian Ocean nations signed on to the African Continental Free Trade Area, which came into force in May this year. Sri Lanka’s first modern and comprehensive free trade agreement, signed with Singapore, came into force in May last year.

This region also recognises that economic connectivity is essential for our livelihood and jobs. And that’s why we have devoted so much time and resources on concluding the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which would, if we settle it, bring the 10 ASEAN countries together with our six partners; India, China, Japan, Korea, Australia and New Zealand. This will be the world’s largest free trade agreement. 

Digital connectivity is the new frontier for regional cooperation. And the ongoing digital revolution opens up many new possibilities for the far-flung countries across the Indian Ocean and all the atolls dotted in between. So, there is much scope for both sides to forge closer collaboration, also as we forge and help to spread smart cities across our entire region. 

We as member states need to invest in building the digital superhighways that will facilitate long distance connections amongst our people and enable instantaneous cross-border payments. And this is not just about Fintech for its own sake, but about expanding opportunities for small and medium enterprises, for artists, hawkers, and people who work with their hands to access a regional and global market. We are familiar with the story in Kenya and M-Pesa, a mobile payment system, which has helped to lift almost a million Kenyans out of extreme poverty since it was introduced in 2007. And even as we are inspired by that story, we need to do similar things in our part of the world as well.

Conclusion

So let me conclude: four conferences on, we are all agreed that we want an Indian Ocean built on peace, security, stability and prosperity. We have remained committed to facilitating dialogue, building trust, and strengthening multilateral mechanisms. And as the global issues of climate change and anti-globalisation continue their tide, I hope this conference will generate concrete responses for us so that we can respond cohesively, collectively, and forge our own independent, collective future.

Thank you all very much.

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

SINGAPORE

4 SEPTEMBER 2019