Rajnath Singh: Dialogue only civilised mechanism to resolve disputes

New Delhi, November 25

“India stands for a free, open and rules-based Indo-Pacific as it is important for economic development of not only the region but also the wider global community,” Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said during his keynote address at the Indo-Pacific Regional Dialogue (IPRD) here today.

FOR ALL-ROUND DEVELOPMENT

India stands for a free and rules-based Indo-Pacific as it is important for development of not only the region, but also wider global community. Rajnath Singh, Defence Minister

He quoted PM Modi as having said India stood for a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific, “which embraces us all in a common pursuit of progress and prosperity”. Without naming China, Rajnath said dialogue was the only civilised mechanism for resolving disputes. China is locked in disputes with other nations over the demarcation of maritime boundary in the South China Sea. “The era of war is over,” Rajnath Singh said, citing Modi’s speech at the recent G20 Summit at Bali.

The IPRD-2022 ended today. The three-day event, an annual apex-level regional strategic dialogue of the Indian Navy, was this year based on the overarching theme of “Operationalising the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative”. The IPRD-2022 explored sub-themes that could provide a greater degree of specificity and traction to the IPOI.

Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar said India was well-positioned to be in the vanguard of net security providers within the Indo-Pacific and preferred security partner in the Indian Ocean. At the valedictory address, Vice-Admiral G Ashok Kumar (retd), the National Maritime Security Coordinator, touched upon inter-agency coordination and the importance of information-sharing in enhancing maritime domain awareness.

The minister released a book published by National Maritime Foundation titled “Coastal Security Dimensions of Maritime Security”.