Meeting on the Straits of Malacca and Singapore
Enhancing safety, security and environmental protection
Opening address by Efthimios E. Mitropoulos, Secretary-General of the International
Maritime Organization, Singapore, 4 September 2007
Deputy Prime Minister, Ministers, Excellencies, IALA Secretary-General, distinguished
participants, media representatives, ladies and gentlemen,
It is a great
pleasure for me to be with you here today to address this meeting, which has been
convened as a follow-up to those held by IMO, in co-operation with the Governments
of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, in Jakarta, two years ago, and Kuala Lumpur,
last year. My special thanks go to our hosts, the Government of Singapore, for
their support, co operation and hospitality.
In this era
of globalization, inter-dependency and inter-connectivity, the establishment and
maintenance of safe and secure conditions worldwide, for the transport of goods
and for the movement of people, is a key factor in social development and a necessity
for economic growth, being, at the same time, essential for the attainment of
the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals. If this is true for all modes
of transport, it is imperative for shipping, which is credited with the carriage
of more than 90 per cent of world trade. It follows that safety and security in
maritime operations in general and, more particularly, in straits used for international
navigation and shipping lanes of strategic importance and significance, are so
crucial and far reaching that they go beyond the immediate concerns of the shipping
industry alone.
The 2005 Jakarta
Meeting was held in direct response to the wishes of the IMO Council that, through
co-operation among all stakeholders and, in particular, with the consent, co-operation
and support of the littoral States, appropriate action, in accordance with international
law, was taken at all levels to ensure that the Straits of Malacca and Singapore
remained open to international navigation under all circumstances.
To that end,
both the Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur Meetings were assessed as having successfully
achieved their objectives in that they provided a forum for discussion among interested
parties to promote and advance the establishment of a framework of co-operation
aimed at enhancing safety of navigation, environmental protection and security
in the Straits.
The importance
of this meeting lies in the fact that it launches a new framework for co-operation
in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore. It is envisaged that this new framework
will enable all stakeholders - industry and user States and, above all, the Straits'
littoral States - to confer and continue exchanging experiences and pursuing innovative
initiatives on all safety, security and environmental protection-related matters:
from the provision, maintenance and replacement of aids to navigation, the removal
of hazardous wrecks and the environmental and economic impact of the projected
increase of vessel traffic through them, to the role that each of these stakeholders
can play in contributing to the attainment of the objectives we have gathered
here in Singapore to pursue, building on the successful outcome of the two previous
meetings.
In this respect,
details on the new Co-operative Mechanism the littoral States have established
to enhance safety of navigation and environmental protection in the Straits are
eagerly anticipated. I view the Mechanism as an historic breakthrough of great
significance in the concerted efforts undertaken by all the parties concerned,
as it constitutes the first attempt to put in place a formal framework to promote
implementation of both the spirit and intent underlying article 43 of the United
Nations Law of the Sea Convention - which aims at achieving co-operation in the
establishment and maintenance of navigational and safety aids in, and in the prevention,
reduction and control of pollution from ships sailing through, straits used for
international navigation. The Co operative Mechanism is also significant as it
represents a commitment to continuous dialogue and co-operation among the littoral
States and stakeholders on issues of relevance to the Straits. It will enable
user States, the shipping industry and other stakeholders each to play their respective
roles, while engaging, consulting and co-operating with the littoral States on
issues relating to the enhancement of safe navigation and the protection of the
marine environment in the Straits. It also offers practical avenues for user States,
and users of the Straits, to make voluntary contributions towards ensuring the
uninterrupted flow of traffic therethrough. Seen from all possible aspects, the
Co-operative Mechanism should be heralded as a much welcomed step in the direction
of providing a sound basis for henceforth considering, and moving forward, issues
relating to the Straits. Thanks to the genuine spirit of co-operation displayed
so far by all parties concerned, it is only natural to anticipate that, through
goodwill and building on experience gained in its implementation, it will be refined
and improved further in the years to come. The key issue here is that it has been
established; and it is now up to user States and users of the Straits to engage
in, and sustain, the process.
***
From our collective
efforts to ensure safe navigation worldwide, it is evident that, for a number
of countries, the establishment and maintenance of adequate aids to navigation
along coasts adjacent to shipping routes presents significant difficulties.
In some cases, the limited resources available can only be channeled towards
the establishment, maintenance, repair and replacement of aids to navigation
only in the vicinity of ports. And if this is the case today, coastal States
will certainly face increased and more complicated difficulties in the future
when confronted with the need to provide state-of-the-art aids to navigation
to meet the anticipated challenges of a steadily expanding volume of maritime
traffic, justified by the demands of an ever-increasing population and those
anticipated by the next generations of ships.
Although
there are a variety of provisions in international law compelling States to
provide adequate aids to navigation along their coasts, one wonders whether,
with the traffic projections I just mentioned, this obligation should continue
to be the responsibility of coastal States alone, in particular when assessed
vis-à-vis ships which merely sail off their coasts. Such an assessment
becomes more relevant in the case of coastal States which lack the resources,
experience and expertise to honour to the full their obligations under the requirements
of respective Conventions to which they are party. The time may, therefore,
have come for all parties who benefit from the existence of a safe infrastructure
in the Straits to reflect seriously on their collective social responsibilities
and to find ways and means, possibly through voluntary contributions, to discharge
their relevant social obligations.
Whilst the
concept of voluntary contributions and the sharing of social responsibility
may sound new to some, many will recall that these were amongst the first issues
to confront the Maritime Safety Committee of IMO, when, in April 1961 (that
is, only three years after IMO came into being), the United Kingdom brought
the question of the repair and maintenance of certain lights in the Red Sea
to the attention of the Organization seeking a collaborative solution to the
problem - one, similar to that successfully addressed by the Middle East Navigational
Aids Service in the Persian Gulf. And the adoption of Rules for the management,
operation and financing of the North Atlantic Ice Patrol, as institutionalized
in chapter V of the 1974 SOLAS Convention in May 2000, is yet another example
of a service providing vital information for the safety of navigation, the maintenance
of which is duly shared by States benefiting from its existence - not to mention
IMO's efforts to implement the global SAR Plan, through a relevant ad hoc Fund,
by assisting coastal States to put in place the necessary infrastructure to
respond to calls for help by shipping using their waters.
***
Those who attended
last year's meeting in Kuala Lumpur will recall that the littoral States, in
response to the decisions of the earlier Jakarta Meeting, presented a set of
six proposals for projects aimed at enhancing the safety of navigation and environmental
protection in the Straits. Since then, China has actively pursued the implementation
of the project concerning the replacement of aids to navigation damaged by the
tsunami disaster of December 2004. And, only last month, together with the United
States, it undertook a needs' assessment exercise to refine the project proposal
on the establishment of adequate capacity in the Straits for preparedness and
response to pollution incidents from hazardous and noxious substances, so that
the project may be implemented in stages and in a modular manner by multiple
sponsors. In addition, the littoral States have undertaken to review and fine-tune
the remaining four projects to attract sponsors.
The involvement
of China and the United States is significant as it reflects the willingness
and commitment of countries, other than the littoral States, to step up and
support the principle of collective responsibily in the Straits. It is my hope
that their contribution will have a positive effect on other stakeholders.
And, while
it gives me pleasure to acknowledge the contribution the Nippon Foundation has
been making, over many years, towards enhancing safety and environmental protection
in the Straits, I find it disappointing that, so far, no voluntary contributions
have been announced towards meeting the expenditure associated with the identified
needs. It is true that the size and duration of the projects, especially those
that concern the removal of wrecks, and the maintenance, repair and replacement
of a number of aids to navigation within the established traffic separation
schemes, are such that it would be impossible for individual sponsors to underwrite
alone. Projects of that magnitude can only be brought to a successful completion
if several sponsors come forward with generous voluntary donations, either as
a one-off contribution or over a number of years. Thus, it seems to me that
the main challenge we face, and are asked to respond to, today is how to sensitize
interested parties to kick-start the required process; and, also, identify those
who will be valiant enough to take the first step. I am, personally, determined
to work, as hard as possible, to achieve this aim. In this, I know that I am
not alone and that, as long as the spirit is willing, Governments, the industry
and international organizations (such as IALA and IHO) will be eager to join
forces to provide the Straits with the features of safety, security and environmental
protection they deserve. The fact that, in spite of the serious difficulties
we have had to face and overcome in the process, we are where we are today,
makes me optimistic that, together, we can ride the waves and reach the safety
of our port of destination soon. The omens are good - and we should keep trying!
***
Excellencies, ladies
and gentlemen,
For a second
year running, the efforts of the littoral States to prevent, combat and suppress
acts of piracy and armed robbery against ships sailing through the Straits have
brought good results. Their commendable collective initiatives, both at sea
and in the air, which have seen several stages of capacity- and confidence-building
entailing considerable coordination at national level among civil, law enforcement
and military authorities, including coast guards, deserve special mention here.
The main challenge faced now is to sustain, even develop further, the Malacca
Straits Security Initiatives for many years to come. For it was security or,
to put it in a different way, the fear of a terrorist attack succeeding in blocking
the Straits, with all the negative repercussions such a criminal act may entail
on human life, property and the marine environment (not to mention its very
serious repercussions on the economies of the littoral States, in the first
place, and those of countries in the wider Far East region, in the second),
that prompted, almost three years ago, the IMO Council to act to ensure that
shipping lanes of strategic importance and significance are kept open to international
shipping - a decision that triggered the Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore
Meetings with fruitful results for everyone to see.
It is in
the light of such encouraging developments that I take this opportunity to add
my own voice of appreciation to that expressed by others for the continuing
efforts being made by the littoral States in areas associated with the unimpeded
flow of traffic through the Straits, in particular in their counter-piracy activities,
which I sincerely hope will bear the same good fruit in other piracy-infested
areas of the world - notably, off the coast of Somalia.
Mr. Chairman,
I welcome
warmly the presence here today of so many high level dignitaries from Governments
and the industry alike - a presence, which demonstrates, quite clearly, how
high a priority the Straits issue is, both for South and East Asia and, indeed,
for the whole world. I am confident that, through the contribution of all, we
will be able, further to the commendable regional efforts made thus far, to
maintain the established channel of communication and consultation for a meaningful
and fruitful dialogue among all parties concerned; and, together, take all other
necessary steps to ensure the safe, secure and clean passage of ships through
the Straits. For I am, more than ever, convinced that it is only through working
together that we will be able to address, efficiently and effectively, the multi-faceted
and interconnected challenges and threats confronting the world nowadays, including
those that brought us here.
I have every
confidence that the spirit of co-operation and determination to succeed that
pervaded the predecessor Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur Meetings and which has, so
far, borne rich fruit in a wider context will, once again, prevail here as well;
and that this meeting - in the course of which, you will receive an IMO report
on recent developments in the implementation of the MEH demonstration project
in the Straits, which is funded by the Global Environment Facility of the World
Bank and only recently received a generous financial contribution from the Republic
of Korea - will prove to be another decisive step towards the overall enhancement
of safety, security and environmental protection in the Straits, a regional
issue with global implications. I am convinced that, building on the success
of those two previous Meetings and continuing to work together, with due respect
to the sensitivities of the littoral States, their territorial integrity, sovereign
rights, rules and regulations and in conformity with international law, in particular
the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, we will be able to add our contribution
to the global efforts spearheaded by IMO to create a safer, more secure and
cleaner marine environment in which ships can sail freely in pursuit of their
peaceful objectives in the service of mankind.
In closing,
I would like to reiterate my thanks to the Government of Singapore, personally
and on behalf of the entire IMO Membership and Secretariat, for offering to
host this Meeting and for their generous hospitality. I also thank the Governments
of Indonesia and Malaysia for their co-operation with Singapore and IMO in preparing
for the meeting; as well as all the moderators and speakers; and my associates
in our Maritime Safety Division, who have pursued the convening of this event
with zeal, enthusiasm, passion, patience and commitment and have worked relentlessly
to ensure its success.
Thank you.
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