Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan's Remarks at the Inaugural Session of the Eighth Indian Ocean Conference, 16 February 2025

The inaugural session of the Eighth Indian Ocean Conference (IOC) was held in Muscat, Oman on 16 February 2025. This year's conference theme, “Voyage to New Horizons of Maritime Partnership”, focused on strengthening maritime partnerships and promoting sustainable development through responsible trade and resource management. Singapore is represented at the Eighth IOC by Ambassador-At-Large Ong Keng Yong and officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

As a maritime nation committed to working with partners to enhance regional cooperation and promote a peaceful, stable, and prosperous Indian Ocean, Singapore was an early supporter of the IOC and has consistently participated in this annual conference. Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, who is on the Presidium of the Eighth IOC alongside Minister of External Affairs of the Republic of India Dr S Jaishankar and Foreign Minister of the Sultanate of Oman Sayyid Badr Bin Hamad Bin Hamood Al-Busaidi, addressed leaders, policy makers and experts virtually at the opening session earlier today.

In his speech, Minister underscored the need for collective action to uphold a stable, rules-based maritime order. He also highlighted Singapore’s commitment to work with partners to support the sustainable development of the Indian Ocean.

The full transcript of Minister Balakrishnan’s remarks is at ANNEX.

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

SINGAPORE

16 FEBRUARY 2025

ANNEX

TRANSCRIPT OF MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS DR VIVIAN BALAKRISHNAN'S REMARKS AT THE EIGHTH INDIAN OCEAN CONFERENCE, 16 FEBRUARY 2025

Minister for Foreign Affairs of Oman Sayyid Badr bin Hamad Albusaidi,

Minister for External Affairs of India Dr S Jaishankar,

Excellencies

Ladies and Gentlemen,

1.       First, an apology for not being able to join you physically in person, but at least, I am here live virtually. It is an honour, a privilege, to address all of you at the Eighth Indian Ocean Conference. Let me extend my deepest appreciation to my good friend and stalwart Minister Sayyid Badr for hosting this conference, as well as Dr Ram Madhav from the India Foundation, who has been an indefatigable spirit behind this conference, and of course, the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies. Thank you all for co-organising this.

2.       The theme of today’s conference is “Voyage to New Horizons of Maritime Partnership”. For millennia, and here, I will echo Minister Sayyid Badr, the Indian Ocean has been a vital economic lifeline, a cultural bridge, and a conduit for essential commerce. From the ancient maritime Spice Route to some of today’s busiest shipping lanes like the Strait of Malacca, the Indian Ocean has fostered not just the movement of physical goods, but the exchange of knowledge and ideas which have shaped our shared history.

Importance of the Indian Ocean

3.       The Indian Ocean today connects the major engines of the international economy all the way from the North Atlantic to those of us here in the Asia-Pacific. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development estimates that over 80 per cent of global trade by volume and over 70 per cent by value is transported by sea. A substantial portion of this flows through the Indian Ocean, including about 80 per cent of the world’s maritime oil trade and 9.48 billion tonnes of cargo.

4.       It is worth recollecting that despite modern connectivity options like air travel and high-speed rail, maritime shipping remains the most cost-efficient way of transporting vast quantities of cargo across our globe. An average container ship that traverses the Suez Canal today can carry about 18,000 TEUs, 20-foot equivalent units. If we were to unload every single container from this ship and place them onto a train, that train would stretch for more than 100 kilometres.

5.       There is no substitute for the economies of scale offered by maritime shipping. However, this is premised on the continued openness and sustainability of the oceans and seas. 

Challenges to the Global Order

6.       The fact of the matter is that our world has become more dangerous. There are hot wars still smouldering in the Middle East, in Africa, and in Ukraine. There is a danger of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction as well as precision and AI guided systems becoming more lethal and potent in the future. Today, we all know that even non-state actors can interdict vital lanes of communication.

7.       At the same time, the liberal world order, the multilateral system which we have taken for granted over many decades, is now severely eroding. And there has been a pushback all over the world against free trade and economic integration. What this means is that many countries are now taking more protectionist and nationalistic positions. We have also seen flagrant violations of international law and the UN Charter.

8.       In these times, for all the countries represented at this conference, we must reaffirm our collective commitment to international law and a rules-based world order.

United Nations Conventions on the Law of the Sea

9.       The 1982 United Nations Conventions on the Law of the Sea, or UNCLOS, provides that essential legal framework that ensures freedom of navigation and equitable access to maritime resources, as a right, and not by the grace of any resident superpower.

10.     The principles enshrined in UNCLOS enable global maritime trade to flourish as vessels can traverse freely across national jurisdictions and international waterways.

a.        For instance, a ship departing from Singapore can freely sail through the Strait of Malacca, cross the international waters in the Indian Ocean, and navigate through territorial seas in order to visit Mumbai or Salalah, and without seeking permission or paying rentals, or even seeking licence fees for that matter. That is what freedom of navigation means, and this is guaranteed under UNCLOS.

b.       For small trading economies like Singapore and Oman, the open and unimpeded flow of maritime trade is absolutely essential. Just last year, the Port of Singapore set a new record, and we handled over 40 million TEUs. This is just in Singapore. If you lined up all the containers that were processed through Singapore last year, if you lined them all up, they would stretch more than six and a half times around the Earth’s Equator. That is not a small number.

11.     For all of us here, including littoral and landlocked states that benefit from this essential maritime shipping, UNCLOS, and by extension, a rules-based world order, is essential. 

12.     There is some reason to be optimistic. The adoption by consensus of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement in June 2023, given the times, is a remarkable victory for international law.

13.     Singapore was proud to have played our part in this global effort. Our Ambassador Rena Lee’s leadership as President of the Intergovernmental Conference helped to bring the BBNJ Agreement to fruition. This agreement, aimed at conserving and sustainably using marine biodiversity in the high seas, has direct implications for the Indian Ocean, which is currently also under threat from climate change and global warming.

Sustainable Development

14.     Which brings me to my next point – the need to protect our common heritage, to protect our oceans. The sea surface temperatures in the Indian Ocean have risen by an average of one degree Celsius, and you do not need to be in the Maldives or in Mauritius to see for yourself the widespread coral bleaching and the loss of seagrass. The seas have become rougher, and extreme weather events like cyclones have become more frequent. Key shipping routes are being disrupted. At the current rate of warming, the Indian Ocean is projected to experience near-permanent marine heatwaves.

a.        With the BBNJ Agreement, Marine Protected Areas can be established in international waters. We believe this safeguards critical habitats and marine ecosystems that act as essential carbon sinks, another critical element for mitigating global warming.

15.     We must also invest in the sustainable development of the maritime industry. The International Maritime Organization aims to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by around 2050. Today, shipping accounts for nearly three per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Singapore’s efforts in the sustainable development of the maritime industry

16.     In Singapore, we are taking steps to reduce our maritime emissions.

a.        We have revised our Maritime Singapore Green Initiative to offer incentives for ships that adopt cleaner technologies and sustainable fuels. We are also boosting port productivity and sustainability through new technologies like smart grids.

b.       Our Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation completed its final trial of biofuels, which saw a 28 per cent reduction in emissions compared to conventional fuels. We have also set up a Centre of Excellence in Maritime Energy and Sustainable Development to innovate new solutions.

c.        We have established six bilateral Green and Digital Shipping Corridors to support the decarbonisation of the maritime industry and to enhance efficiencies through digitalisation. I have taken some pains to enumerate this because what we want is to make an appeal for new partners, especially from the Indian Ocean, to join us in this essential enterprise for the future.

Conclusion

17.     So let me conclude by saying that in an era of increasing geopolitical uncertainty and environmental challenges, all of us need to work together to uphold a stable, rules-based maritime order and to pursue sustainable solutions that safeguard our shared ocean, the Indian Ocean, for future generations.

18.     This conference is an important opportunity for us to exchange ideas, forge new collaborations, and reaffirm our collective commitment to these goals. I look forward to the constructive discussions ahead and to charting a course for a more secure and sustainable future for all of us in the Indian Ocean. 

Thank you all very much.

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