The International Maritime Conference, ‘Galle Dialogue 2019’, organised by the Sri Lanka Navy under the patronage of the Ministry of Defence, commenced in Colombo yesterday.
State Defence Minister Ruwan Wijewardene graced the occasion as the chief guest. One hundred and forty eight local and foreign scholars and experts in naval and maritime affairs representing 52 countries and 17 international organisations including India, China, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States attended this year’s conference.
The opening remarks were made by the Navy Commander Vice Admiral Piyal De Silva. The State Defence Minister delivered the keynote address at the inaugural session.
A group of high-ranking naval officers and representatives of international organisations will be presenting their papers at the conference which is being held under the theme ‘Refining mindset to address transnational maritime threats: A review of the decade’.
The purpose of the Galle Dialogue International Maritime Conference inaugurated by the Sri Lanka Navy in 2010 is to provide a common platform for stakeholders of national and international repute to discuss and deliberate maritime-related issues.
The Indian Ocean has witnessed an unparalleled maritime insecurity during the last decade such as the proliferation of arms, piracy, human trafficking, maritime terrorism and narcotics trafficking which in turn threaten the stability in the region and pose a great threat to sea lanes of communication (SLOC).
In this regard, Sri Lanka Navy played an enormous role for nearly two decades to defeat maritime terrorism and further strengthen maritime security and safety of SLOCs in the Indian Ocean region.
In his keynote address, State Minister Wijewardene said Sri Lanka’s position in the Indian Ocean plays a vital role in the maritime domain and the distance between the Strait of Hormuz and the Strait of Malacca is approximately 2,000 miles and Sri Lanka is located almost right in the centre of this strategic route.
He said the strategic importance of Sri Lanka in history is much bigger than its small size.
Wijewardene noted that at present, 90 percent of world trade takes place by sea and half of the world’s container traffic passes through the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). The SLOCs in the IOR are strategically very important for the entire world. Any disturbance or interruption to the sea flow of traffic could have a great impact on the world’s economy. Hence, the uninterrupted flow of maritime traffic in this region is essential for economic development.
“Transnational threats are becoming major security issues in the IOR. Different extremist religious groups and terrorists are using the maritime domain extensively for their activities.”
“This has endangered the security of the main sea routes in the Indian Ocean. In the future, this situation could be worse with the rise of illicit arms and drug trafficking in the region. But, policing this vast region poses the biggest challenge,” he noted.
The State Minister expressed confidence that Sri Lanka’s present and future contributions in the field of energy and security will be able to make a significant impact on the Indian Ocean region.
Meanwhile, Navy Commander Vice Admiral Piyal De Silva in his welcome address said that transnational crimes such as human smuggling, piracy, drug trafficking, maritime terrorism and maritime pollution have room to take place because of the lack of adequate domination and surveillance at sea.
“The increasing number of sea-going vessels and their growing diversity make the identification of potential threats very difficult. Threats also exist in sea lanes of communication which in turn affect the international trade and energy security. Therefore, countries must get together to find solutions beyond the legal intervention in the high seas despite of the existence of various conventions, treaties or agreements, whereas token joint naval exercises are no longer adequate.”
“Furthermore, this forum facilitates establishment of cooperation among nations. This vital forum has always been promoting proper intelligence sharing and timely communication between the navies and other maritime agencies over the last nine years,” he added.
The Navy Commander noted that this conference has reiterated and amply highlighted that no matter how powerful we are individually, as long as we act in isolation, we will be ineffective in mitigating present threats being posed by non-state actors and criminals out at sea.
“Hence, I am certain that understanding, cooperation and collaboration efforts among us will be further enhanced with your dialogue at this conference.”
“Having considered all such discussions, deliberations, arguments and agreements to establish and enhance cooperation, coordination, collaboration and sharing of knowledge, experiences, resources and information among us, this year, we have planned to conduct the Galle Dialogue conference under the theme ‘Refining Mindset to Address Transnational Maritime Threats: A Review of the Decade’ in order to understand how all maritime stakeholders and participants of the Galle Dialogue over the last decade have responded individually or collectively to address transnational maritime threats in the ocean space,” he said.
Defence Secretary General (Rtd) Shantha Kottegoda, Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Ravindra C. Wijegunaratne, Army Commander Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva and Air Force Commander Air Marshal Sumangala Dias and foreign delegates at Galle Dialogue 2019 yesterday. Pictures courtesy SL Navy
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"Galle Dialogue" commenced at Galle Face Hotel (16:44)
The International Maritime Conference, ‘Galle Dialogue 2019’, organized by the Sri Lanka Navy under the patronage of the Ministry of Defence, commenced in Colombo today. The State Minister of Defence, Ruwan Wijewardene graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. 148 Local and foreign scholars and experts in naval and maritime affairs representing 52 countries and 17 international organizations including India, China, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States attended this year’s conference.
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