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Australia welcomes the December statement by ASEAN Foreign Ministers, which expressed concerns about developments that threaten regional peace and security in the maritime sphere.

That Statement reiterated the need for dialogue, restraint and the peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with international law, particularly UNCLOS.

And the need for building trust and confidence – which requires transparency and restraint. 

And the importance of regular dialogue between China and the United States.

Australia supports this approach and we play our part in advocating for peace.

Since I became Foreign Minister, I have consistently reiterated US calls for open lines of communication with China and said it was in all of our interests for those overtures to be met.

We welcome the resumption of leader-level and military-level dialogue between the United States and China.

These are important steps on the path towards stability that the region has called for.

We must also commit to preventive architecture to increase resilience and reduce the risk of conflict through misunderstanding or miscalculation.

This is not just about the great powers. Australia listened carefully to Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong when he said last year:

“This rivalry affects every country and region in the world…And the risk of accidents and miscalculation is ever present, especially in dangerous hotspots like the Taiwan Strait. This worries Asian countries a lot. We are close to ground zero.”

This situation requires all of us to shape habits of cooperation that sustain the character of our region.

To insist differences are managed through dialogue, not force.

To insist that communication never be withheld as a punishment or offered as a reward.

We want to support ASEAN Member States to ensure, collectively, we all have the practical tools we need to be able to rapidly and effectively deescalate tensions and crises.

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The maritime domain is at the heart of our shared interests and our shared prosperity.

And so we welcome ASEAN’s first joint maritime military exercise – ASEAN Solidarity Exercise 2023 – which demonstrates its capacity for collective action and mutual support.

The countries of our region rely on oceans, seas and rivers for livelihoods and commerce, including free and open sea lanes in the South China Sea.

The ASEAN Charter and the ASEAN Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia both set norms for the region, and for our approach to preventive diplomacy and conflict prevention – including in the maritime space.

Australia is working with ASEAN to increase resilience to coercion, and to ensure waterways that serve us all remain open and accessible.

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What happens in the South China Sea, in the Taiwan Strait, in the Mekong subregion, across the Indo-Pacific, affects us all.

Australia will always seek our security within the security of our region.

We recognise ASEAN centrality as key to the region’s stability and security, and we are committed to supporting ASEAN’s leadership.

We recognise the strength of ASEAN’s collective voice – which resonates throughout the region when it speaks on its view of the importance of sovereignty and rules.

While our region comprises different political systems, we share a common interest in maintaining open and transparent communication.

These habits of communication, these norms of cooperation underpin the character of our region.

Never underestimate the capacity of norms to underpin the character of a region.

And ASEAN’s role in enabling and buttressing those norms.

And it is a character which we wish to preserve, free from coercion or the threat of force.

For all these reasons, I am pleased, with my friend Enrique, to open this Maritime Cooperation Forum today.

It is an opportunity for Australia and for ASEAN, for officials and academics, to advance our shared economic, security and environmental interests in a stable maritime sphere and develop new ideas to support ASEAN’s maritime vision.

All states, big and small, have a stake in these issues and must be part of their solution.

Our challenges are vast.

I encourage participants to be bold.

As all our governments must be bold.

Because nothing less than the peace and prosperity of our region is at stake.

Thank you.

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Source: Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Speaker: Senator the Hon. Penny Wong, Minister for Foreign Affairs

Format: Speech

Link to Original Source