Indian Navy’s expansive initiative to ‘Harness Maritime Intellectual Property’
Maritime Security in the Indian Ocean Region: Aims to translate common maritime priorities into a collaborative mitigation framework
The 4th edition of Goa Maritime Conclave (GMC) was organized by the Indian Navy courtesy the Naval War College, Goa from 29 to 31 Oct 23. The theme of the conference is “Maritime Security in the Indian Ocean Region: Translating Common Maritime Priorities into a Collaborative Mitigation Framework”. This is in line with the present and urgent imperative to ‘harmonize and cooperate in the capabilities and strengths’ inherent in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) towards realizing the vision of our Honorable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region). exposes.
The event hosted Ministers/Naval Chiefs and Chiefs of Maritime Security Forces from 12 Indian Ocean countries including Bangladesh, Comoros, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Myanmar, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
On the first day of this conference, the chief guest, Honorable Defense Minister Shri Rajnath Singh, gave the keynote address of the program. After this, Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture, Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi made a special address.
Defense Minister appreciated the Goa Maritime Conclave initiative for providing a practical platform aimed at meaningful dialogue towards restoring mutual trust. Congratulating the event, he stressed that it is an inevitable responsibility for all countries in the Indian Ocean Region to take action as a necessary condition for cooperation and development, regardless of whether they are concerned about the resources in the sea or those originating from the sea. Coordinate your efforts to successfully meet threats and challenges.
The Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture highlighted India’s rich maritime history and the role of coastlines in connecting different civilizations across the Indian region and called for collaboration and capacity building of stakeholders to enhance the resilience and prosperity of the region.
Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar discussed at the Goa Maritime Conclave how a small collaboration of heads of maritime security agencies has evolved into a functional arrangement that deals with international challenges in the Indian Ocean Region . He highlighted the fact that “the maritime challenges plaguing the region most affect the countries located within it”. He said that our idea is to take the responsibility of resolving these issues in a collaborative manner. Thus, in the previous edition of the Goa Maritime Conclave in the year 2021, ‘Common Minimum Priorities’ were set and this year the objective is to prepare a ‘Collaborative Mitigation Framework’ to meet these priorities.
Vice Admiral MA Hampiholi, FOC-in-C, Southern Naval Command, delivered the opening welcome address. During this, he thanked the delegations present for their participation in the Indian Navy’s initiative aimed at harnessing the combined potential of all countries in the Indian Ocean Region for a shared future. He also stressed the Indian Navy’s continued commitment towards a secure and inclusive Indian Ocean region.
Addressing the conference, former Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Arun Prakash (Retd) highlighted the importance of partnership between countries in the Indian Ocean region in ensuring an open and secure global commons. He also drew the attention of the Forum to the need to progressively strengthen various Indian activities and existing cooperation mechanisms to enable constructive engagement with all partner countries in the region.
On the first day of the programme, detailed discussions were held on four sub-themes in line with the main theme of the conference:
• Identifying gaps in the regulatory and legal framework to ensure maritime security in the Indian Ocean region
• Creation of a common multilateral maritime strategy and operating protocol for the Goa Maritime Conclave countries for collective mitigation of maritime threats and challenges.
• Design and launch collaborative training programs with Centers of Excellence across the Indian Ocean Region
• Leveraging activities conducted through existing multilateral organizations in the Indian Ocean Region towards unleashing collective maritime competencies
On the sidelines of the main event, the Chief of the Indian Navy, Flag Officers Commanding-in-Chief and Vice Chief of the Naval Staff held bilateral talks with their FFC counterparts. Apart from this, the heads of delegations and naval chiefs of the participating countries also held bilateral discussions with their counterparts from other countries.
Naval Chiefs/Heads of delegation shared their perspectives on the opportunities and threats in the Indian Ocean Region on the concluding day. All speakers expressed common views on the need for cooperation to advance security and development for all in the region.
A “Make in India Exhibition” was organized on the occasion of the conference, organized as part of India’s self-reliant initiative. This exhibition showcased the capabilities of India’s indigenous shipbuilding industry. The dignitaries also visited the indigenous warships and tested the capabilities of the Deep Submergence Rescue Vessel (DSRV).
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