Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I thank the government of Singapore for the warm hospitability extended to us and the organisers for making excellent arrangements for the Dialogue. Though I had the intention of joining the Dialogue on the previous two occasions, but because of some domestic reasons I could not do so. I am glad to have the opportunity of participating in the Fifth Shangri-La Dialogue. On this occasion, our mind goes to the suffering people of Indonesia of the latest earthquake. When I heard of the crisis, I was in Tokyo and I sent a message of condolence to my Indonesian counterpart. India along with the other countries has extended a hand of cooperation to provide relief and succour to the hapless victims of the earthquake.

I have been asked by the organizers of the increasingly popular Shangri-La Dialogue to speak to you today as a representative of India – one of the rising global players. While in general I will talk about “Growing India and its impact on regional and world matters”. I am also taking the liberty to briefly review our fast evolving ties with Northeast Asia, ASEAN and Singapore and end the address with a few words on maritime security. I felt I should begin with a brief overview of India’s well-known defence and security policy goals.

INDIA’S DEFENCE POLICY GOALS

Protecting and safeguarding India’s territorial integrity and sovereignty undoubtedly lies at the core of India’s defence policy. It is India’s national mission to promote rapid economic and social development for the vast majority of its people. Our defence and security policy is dovetailed to this supreme goal to ensure a peaceful and secure internal and external environment, in which it can be pursued. India has always been actively promoting and sustaining durable peace in the immediate neighbourhood, including the Indian Ocean Region. Premised on the twin policies of no extra-territorial ambition and no export of ideology, India seeks the peaceful resolution of all disputes.

As Defence Minister of India, it is my responsibility to ensure that our defence forces are adequately equipped to safeguard against any aggression. This established doctrine has led India over the last few decades to create defence industrial and technological capabilities to equip our armed forces, and we strive continuously to build upon such capacities. That in turn has led India to augment its industrial and technological resources through collaboration where necessary, in recent years, both through public-private partnership and with dependable foreign partners.

India’s desire for peace and the use of diplomatic means for resolution of all disputes is unwavering. However, as a large and vibrant democracy with a diverse social, religious and economic background of its peoples, the country finds that its peaceful stance has to be backed by a credible and stable military deterrent with necessary command and control structures. This includes a nuclear doctrine of credible minimum deterrence. Ingredients of this doctrine are, ‘no first use’, non-use against non-nuclear weapons states, and voluntary moratorium on further tests. This defence preparedness is not at the cost of developmental expenditure. Hence, India’s defence expenditure remains modest at less than 2.5% of GDP and in per capita terms among the lowest.

Given the global challenges and dangers posed by international terrorism, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and related technologies, piracy on the high seas, trafficking of arms and drugs and the increasing levels of violence resorted to by non-state actors, requires us to operate a modern defence intelligence gathering and sharing system. Global challenges have to be met head on globally. This belief leads India to actively work with friendly countries in regional and global security tasks, UN peacekeeping and peace building, counter-terrorism, non-proliferation and arms control.

INDIA’S ROLE IN ASIA AND THE WORLD

As the largest and most populous continent, Asia hosts nearly 60% of the global population and about 25% of the global GDP; three declared nuclear weapons states and a couple of others tacitly acknowledged so; two of the largest standing armies in the world, non-Asian navies operating freely in Asian waters and a large number of missile producing and exporting countries. If expanded to the Asia-Pacific region then this huge Asian entity combines with the large north and south American economies and the vast military might and influence of the United States.

Where does India stand in this impressive array? A lumbering elephant or an emerging giant? perhaps a bit of both. With its economy growing at over 8% per annum last year and set to rise further in the coming years, India’s one billion people are increasingly a driver of regional and global growth and prosperity. Software, manufacturing, agriculture, nuclear energy, space, disaster management, maritime affairs, entertainment and culture are areas in which India’s role is becoming increasingly vital for the region and the world. While the country will still need more time of continuing high growth and a sustainable and balanced development strategy to overcome the problems of poverty, uneven development, infrastructural and institutional deficiencies, it is proactively addressing all these issues. India is a unique case where development, industrialization and democracy have gone hand in hand.

While there are differences between us, there is also an increasingly greater realization that there is enough space and opportunity in the region for both India and China to prosper. We are not just passively embedded in our region bound by our common neighbourhood, but are constantly interacting through endeavours which have brought huge dividends to both. Look at India’s trade with China. From a meagre few hundred million dollars in the beginning of the nineteen-nineties, our trade has already crossed US$ 13 billion last year. We also look at our relations in a larger regional and global backdrop and realize the responsibility we both shoulder in contributing to the well being of humanity. We are mindful of the overarching importance of a peaceful surrounding environment for us to pursue our most fundamental task of national development. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s visit to India later this year will offer another opportunity to us to add further substance to our relationship, a relationship which both value.

The distinguished Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping had told the charismatic Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi almost 20 years ago, that there could be no Asia-Pacific century or Asian century without India and China forming crucial elements of such an architecture. India is one of the important legs of the Asian juggernaut along with China, Japan and Indonesia. In the Asia-Pacific region, India’s growing ties with the United States and other countries in North and South America brings with it a commensurate role in the region.

Asia’s emergence is no longer a grand hypothesis. Its growth credentials are increasingly in the realm of reality. Notably, Asia currently contributes about 25% of global GDP, which is expected to rise to 57% by 2025. Asian countries are among the fastest developing economies in the world. Intra-Asian trade in 2002 was US $ 3587 billion- about a quarter of world trade.

India’s role is crucial for ensuring and maintaining long-term peace, stable balance of power, economic growth and security in Asia. It is a core state whose role is crucial for the economic well-being, institution building, collective and cooperative security, economic integration and trade expansion and political and civilisational dialogue, essential for a growing Asia. It straddles the land and maritime spaces between East and West, and provides potential energy and trade corridors to Central Asia and the Indian Ocean region. Responding to the challenges of globalization is one of the key issues faced by all nations today. As a pluralistic, democratic and English speaking society, India is well placed to respond.

Those of our neighbours like Sri Lanka and Bhutan, who have chosen to leverage India’s engine of growth have benefited significantly. Those who have held back have done so to their detriment. Regional growth has significant security implications because prosperity and pluralism are today key pillars for global security. East Asian development took place in three phases – Japan initially, the Republic of Korea and Taiwan later and now China. Southeast Asia has also made remarkable progress. In our quest for an Asian century, can South Asia afford to lag far behind? This obviously calls for a regional and global effort to facilitate the South Asian region to catch up. India is making every effort in that direction mainly through the vehicle of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). We call upon our SAARC dialogue partners and others to encourage and facilitate this process.

India’s ties with Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea, China and Australia is creating a more stable strategic environment and enhancing independence and institution building in Asia. Coupled with the simultaneous improvement in strategic ties with the United States, the European Union and Russia, this is enabling India for the first time in its diplomatic history to forge significant strategic ties with both West and East Asia. India’s rapid economic and social development and growing confidence in responding to the challenges of globalization is already leading to the restoration of our historical connectivity with Southeast Asia as also West Asia.

The emergence of India as a global player will have a far reaching impact on the international economy, politics and security. In each of these areas, India is poised to play an increasingly larger role and the existing global institutions in their reform process would need to accommodate India’s capabilities and political-intellectual contributions.

As a founding member of the United Nations, India has been firmly committed to the principles and purposes of the United Nations and has consistently and significantly contributed to all aspects of its functioning. India has a long and illustrious history as one of the longest serving and largest troop contributors to the UN peacekeeping operations. India has also played a great role in seeking to address the deficiencies, inequities and problems in the existing global institutional arrangements. As we observe the 60th Anniversary of the United Nations, there is unanimity among the member states that the United Nations is in need of urgent and comprehensive reform, in order to deal with myriad challenges of today’s world more effectively. We believe that the reform and expansion of the United Nations Security Council, in both permanent and non-permanent categories, is central to the process of UN reform. The representation of developing countries from Africa, Asia and other regions, as permanent members of the Security Council is essential in this context. In this framework, India is pursuing its candidature for permanent membership of the Security Council.

EAST ASIA SUMMIT, TIES WITH NORTH-EAST ASIA AND ASEAN

India is glad that the East Asia Summit (EAS) has been initiated and would in the coming years lead to cooperation among the members to create an East Asian Community, which as our Prime Minister has mentioned could be the harbinger of an eventually enlarged Asian community or union. As a member of the EAS, India fully supports and looks forward to constructive cooperation with others in the group to create the framework for greater regional integration and cooperation. We believe such a development would have a positive impact on Asian stability, economic growth and peace.

China is India’s largest neighbour and therefore developing friendly cooperation with China is one of the priorities of our foreign policy. With frequent high-level exchanges including, my just concluded visit to China, the process of building trust and understanding has gained momentum and our relations have diversified across a wide range of areas. Our ties with China have reached a certain degree of maturity where we are determined to build upon our existing commonalities and identify newer areas of mutually beneficial cooperation. At the same time we are striving to address our differences in a proactive and purposive manner, without allowing them to affect the comprehensive development of our relationship.

Our ties with Japan are also expanding rapidly and not just in the economic and investment sphere. Japan, of course plays a major role in our development programmes through the Overseas Development Agency (ODA). In recent years we have stepped up our defence and security ties, based on the view that all countries and regions need to cooperate actively in order to tackle effectively the evolving global challenges. I have also recently concluded a visit to Japan where I had the opportunity to discuss in detail all these issues with my counterpart and some of his senior Cabinet colleagues. Not long ago, India’s Minister of State for Defence visited the Republic of Korea and Mongolia where our defence ties are also in the process of being upgraded.

India’s trade, security and energy ties with East Asia and the Pacific region is set to grow rapidly in the coming years. Southeast Asia and China are already two of our largest trading partners in this region, and Korea and Japan among the leading investors in our country. These ties will grow many-fold in the coming years and would need sustained political, economic and security dialogue mechanisms for institutionalized support. The EAS, ARF and BIMSTEC and emerging strategic partnerships are elements of India’s engagement with East and Southeast Asia, the core of its “Look East Policy”.

INDIA-SINGAPORE RELATIONS

As the host country to the ever-growing Shangri-La Dialogue, it would be remiss of me not to say a few words about India’s dynamic ties with Singapore. It is emerging as a hub for India’s expanding economic, political and security ties with East Asia. Singapore is today an important investment and trading partner, and also provides the base for other East Asian countries to invest in India. It is our hope that the full implementation of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) signed with Singapore in 2005 – the first of its kind for India – will further generate economic integration between India and Singapore, and provide the base for new and wider opportunities for trade, investment, energy and defence ties with all of ASEAN. New areas of defence cooperation, including joint training facilities are emerging and supplementing existing cooperation between India and Singapore in the naval, maritime and counter-terrorism spheres.

MARITIME SECURITY

While in Singapore and at a security conference of this stature, the dimension of maritime security looms large on our radar screens. Singapore stands at the crossroads of one of the most important waterways of the world, the Strait of Malacca. More than fifty percent of India’s maritime trade passes through these waters. Other Asia-Pacific countries like Japan, China and the ROK are even more dependant on the safe and secure passage of their sea trade through the Strait. In recent years, piracy has been a major challenge in this region and we can only hope that maritime terrorism does not follow closely behind.

There is a need to increase and strengthen regional cooperation to enhance maritime security. India has been working with countries in the region, both bilaterally and multilaterally through forums such as ARF to further strengthen cooperation. We believe that through the coordination of our individual efforts, the security of the sea lanes will be enhanced. Otherwise, as we have seen in the USS Cole bombing incident and recent attacks faced by the Sri Lankan Navy vessels, a small dhow or boat can unobtrusively collide with a larger vessel causing considerable loss of lives and equipment.

India welcomes the three-nation initiative on monitoring shipping through Compulsory Pilotage project of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. Subject to the desire of the littoral states, as a major user-state, India would be willing to assist the project in whatever capacity is deemed suitable. India has developed capabilities in various aspects of maritime security and would be most willing to share its expertise with countries of the region. India is taking steps to join the Container Security Initiative and has identified the Nava Sheva port for purposes of executing this initiative. The Indian Navy has initiated several maritime security and capacity building measures such as countering piracy by joint exercises (specifically with Indonesia), returned the Allondra Rainbow ship to the Japanese authorities from pirates and participated in Tsunami relief measures in 2004-2005 in Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Maldives. The establishment of a Regional Marine Training Centre has been discussed at the ARF Workshop and the ARF Senior Officers Meeting. We believe that such a Centre would go a long way in establishing common understanding and common procedures. India would be happy to be associated with this initiative. Consistent with their global strategic partnership and the new framework for our defence relationship, India and the United States have committed themselves to comprehensive cooperation in ensuring a secure maritime domain. Similar initiatives have been taken with other maritime partners.

Before I close my address today, I would like to sum up the tangible global trends at the beginning of the 21st century. Barring a few exceptions, nation-states today are in what we might term “political and economic credit” environment in their relations with each other, i.e., generally a positive and mutually beneficial state of political and economic affairs. Unfortunately, this healthy and positive atmosphere is marred by what one might call a worldwide “security deficit”, whereby no country is free from the tension and conflict arising from the scourge of international terrorism, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their related technologies, trafficking of arms, drugs and humans and the growing tendency among non-state actors to take the law into their own hands. I would like this gathering of ministers, officials, researchers and scholars responsible for defence and national security of the countries of the Asia-Pacific region, to ponder deeply what more can be done, individually by each country and collectively as a region.