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Geopolitics and Maritime Security in the Indian Ocean

07 Aug 2014 - 11:59
Bron: Flickr / eunavfor
What role should the European Union play in geopolitics and maritime security in the Indian Ocean?
 
Great power rivalry
 
Policy-makers in the European Union ought to pay close attention to issues of maritime security in the Indian Ocean. While piracy and terrorism in the Indian Ocean are current issues, so-called Great Power rivalry is not yet an immediate security threat in the region. However, the potential effects of Great Power rivalry are more fundamental and reach further than acts of terrorism or piracy. In terms of this rivalry, two major issues stand out. The first is increasing maritime rivalry between India and China. The second major instance of potential Great Power rivalry in the Indian Ocean relates to the risk of spillover effects from maritime tensions in the western Pacific Ocean, including the East and South China Seas.
 
Risks
 
The main risk for the EU in the longer term is that potential Great Power rivalry affects the Indian Ocean region to such an extent that it (further) destabilizes regions in Africa and the Middle East, or that it leads to instability and increased tensions in the Mediterranean region. Unfortunately there is at present no effective mechanism for multilateral cooperation on maritime security in the Indian Ocean.
 
Multilateral cooperation
 
The EU should take the initiative to work with the Indian Ocean’s littoral states to establish a track-II platform for dialogue on maritime security in the Indian Ocean region between academics and former diplomats and military personnel. In the longer run, the EU should follow up on this by working with littoral countries to establish a new forum for maritime security issues in the Indian Ocean region. This could be structured around an annual gathering of the ministers of foreign affairs of its member states, similar to ARF.