Malaysian Defense Minister Dato’ Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein discussed the relations between SE Asia and West Asia while addressing the IISS Manama Dialogue.
Here is the full text of his address as published by IISS website:
Dr John Chipman, Director-General and Chief Executive of the International Institute for Strategic Studies; Sir Stephen Lovegrove, National Security Adviser for the United Kingdom; distinguished delegates; ladies and gentlemen. Today, I have been asked to speak on the Gulf and Asia, a topic that is close to my heart but one which is not without its complexities.
To begin with, let me now stress that the prosperity of both our regions are inseparable. Our past is intertwined. Our present is interlinked. And today, we have an opportunity to shape our futures together.
For far too long, we have allowed the artificial lines that separate our regions on maps to delude us into thinking that the dynamics of one region can be considered in isolation of another. The fact remains that the ability and the stability in the Gulf is a strategic imperative for a peaceful and prosperous Asia and vice versa.
Ladies and gentlemen, for centuries our regions have been linked by trade, commerce and the movement of people and ideas. In fact, it was the Arab traders who began their perilous journey from the Arabian Gulf on vessels propelled by the winds, who brought Islam to Southeast Asia over 1,000 years ago.
The winds of the past have now been replaced with undersea internet cables, transmitting information in fractions of the smallest measure of time, making us more interconnected than ever before. Though there are clear advantages to this, the disadvantages are also prevalent. Connections are a double-edged sword. While they transmit ideas and resources that enrich, they also link those who are determined to destroy the peace we have enjoyed thus far.
Ladies and gentlemen, John, in the interest of time, I would like to just highlight three challenges that both the Gulf and Asia share, which are, firstly, shaping a new post-pandemic era; secondly, the proliferation of terrorism and extremism; and thirdly, major-power competition and rivalry.
On COVID-19, I will not go into the details on how the pandemic has ravaged the lives and livelihoods of millions around the world. This single virus has brought nations down to its knees, regardless of wealth or strength in the global playing field. But a more pertinent point to highlight is our collective response, or lack thereof. In my opinion, the pandemic has led to a nationalistic response and isolated efforts put forth by individual nations. In many ways, the virus has fuelled the argument against globalisation. Everyone is at risk from COVID-19, but unfortunately not all have suffered equally.
The virus does not discriminate against race, religion, nor creed and our response should not too. Emerging from our national efforts is an unequal pattern of recovery, which poses significant risks to long-term equity and social mobility.
In Asia, there is a saying that in every crisis lies an opportunity. We again find ourselves at the crossroads to be able to chart and shape a new post-pandemic era, one that is mutually beneficial for all, in stark contrast to how we responded as individual nations. It is simply not good enough for us to return to pre-pandemic levels, but for us to strive to be better than the past.
Cooperation and collaboration must be the order of the day. Smaller nations, such as Malaysia in our region and Bahrain in the Gulf, are more agile, and together with our larger neighbours we can rise to the challenge to show that our strength in navigating the global landscape post-COVID lies in the fact that we can build more balanced partnerships.
But as much as we, in Southeast Asia, are trying to navigate this new normal, countries in the Gulf are doing the exact same thing. My question is, why can we not do it together? In line with our commonalities, for example, the reopening of Masjid al-Haram for the holy month of Ramadan, the Hajj and the Umrah affects more than 270 million Muslims in Southeast Asia, reaffirming my point that developments in this region have strong ramifications for us in Asia.
COVID presents itself as an opportunity, an opportunity for us to paint together a new blank canvas which represents a new global landscape. As pointed out by Bapak Prabowo last night, for us in Southeast Asia, our strength lies in the diversity of over 650 million people, where differences in language, religion and cultures converge, yet we remain resolute. We remain steadfast. And we remain united in charting our common future. I may be presumptuous but this is where Southeast Asia emerges as a model for the principle of unity in diversity.
This then brings me to my second point, of which the burden falls on us as senior defence and security officials. While the world focuses on COVID, it has given the impression that terrorism and extremism has taken a backseat, and we cannot allow this cloud of judgement to lull us into a false sense of security. Make no mistake, terrorism and extremism continue to be challenged not only in the Gulf and Asia but to the entire global community. Border restrictions may have hampered the physical movement of individuals, but the threat exists and remains active, especially with the rise of internet usage during the multiple lockdowns imposed.
Furthermore, there is the worry that developments in Afghanistan may serve as a morale booster to dormant militant groups in Southeast Asia, giving rise to concern that our region may once again become a haven for terror groups seeking a new base. This serves as a reminder that we, in the Gulf and Asia, must be vigilant in our fight against extremism, and we can ill afford to take our eyes off this war.
The moment the extremists feel we are distracted is the moment they intensify their evil intentions. Even before the pandemic, there is an unfortunate tendency here to consider our regions as constituting separate fronts against extremism. In fact, there are no distinct divides. And what happens in this region has reverberations across Asia. As Bapak Prabowo said last night, if you sneeze in the Middle East, we will catch a flu in Asia. But I would like to add that if you catch a flu in the Middle East, we will be in ICU wards in Asia.
Unfortunate developments in the Middle East give rise to the disturbing prospect of returning fighters. Regional franchises are more disturbingly self-radicalised lone wolves back home. In linking COVID with acts of terror, my greatest fear now is biological warfare. We can now see that nations can crumble without a single bomb going off, without a single bullet even being fired. An unseen virus wreaked havoc on our economies, disrupted education and confined our people to their homes. We must realise the fact that terror aims to create instability and chaos, and this is exactly what the virus has done. Biological warfare remains a risk, and there is a long-standing fear that actors would use a virus like this deliberately as a weapon.
Ladies and gentlemen, Excellencies, my third point is major-power competition and rivalry. It is not my place as Malaysia’s Defence Minister to try and explain the geopolitical dynamics of the Gulf, but instead I wish to elaborate on developments in Southeast Asia. I am, of course, referring to the South China Sea. While progress on the Code of Conduct has been positive thus far, it is only prudent for our optimism to be guarded. Tensions between both major powers in our region is unavoidable, as the sea is one of the world’s busiest shipping routes coupled with existence of vast resources under the seabed. Undoubtedly, this is a complex issue and it must be approached with a cautious practicality.
While Asia, as a region, is rapidly evolving into the centre of growth and prosperity, it would be futile if we cannot rid ourselves of suspicions and hostilities on the ongoing disputes that have been caused. That is why Malaysia has taken an approach to embrace adept diplomacy and deepening defence ties with our partners to carve out a niche space to uphold our interests in the region. We must be realistic in our goals, remain vigilant and measured in every step of the way. The stakes are too high and the cost is not worth the risk, as no one wants or can afford a full-scale confrontation in these waters.
We must set aside our egos, our pride and our anger in moving forward. Combative statements, whether from inside or outside the region, are not helpful and could only serve as a spark to a potential tragedy.
The way forward. So, ladies and gentlemen, what is the way forward? How are we to deal with these challenges together as regions separated by thousands of miles of land and sea? Yes, the challenges I have outlined may be overwhelming and may not even be conclusive, but we must never lose hope.
And on that note, I would like to offer just three humble solutions. Firstly, to build and promote interregional and international cooperation. Secondly, to foster confidence- and trust-building measures. And thirdly, leadership. Leadership. As the first two could be only achieved with leaders on both sides that see the strategic importance of the Gulf stability for wider Asian prosperity and vice versa.
On the point of cooperation, I believe we must endeavour to continue utilising our collective resources towards transitioning the world out of the pandemic. As we are all aware, the role of our respective militaries have played in complementing the work of our health systems is undeniable. The capabilities our armed forces bring to the table is unparalleled in terms of speed and flexibility. For example, in the recent Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Defence Ministers’ Meeting, Malaysia proposed for all the armed forces of ASEAN to work together through military-tomilitary cooperation as a regional block of ten nations to share and learn from the experiences over the past two years, to look ahead for the future in terms of new developments and COVID-19, especially on the three pillars of vaccines, testing and treatments. This could be expanded between all ten members of ASEAN with the Gulf nations. And just today itself, you have the commitment of Malaysia and Indonesia as a catalyst for greater Gulf–ASEAN cooperation.
On terrorism and extremism, it was the realisation of this acute threat that motivated Malaysia to be one of the earliest partners in the Global Coalition against Daesh, when it was established in September 2014. Similarly, Malaysia was among the first countries to join the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition (IMCTC) in 2016. With a membership now of 41 countries, the IMCTC is the only pan-Islamic front against terrorism with a permanent Secretariat, based in Riyadh.
I am pleased to state that Malaysia is studying how it can play a more meaningful role in the fight against terrorism via the IMCTC. Indeed, the foundation of wider security cooperation can also be laid by smaller building blocks, such as sub-regional cooperation initiatives, as mentioned by General Prabowo last night. And I can confirm this. Our Eyes, formed in 2018, is an initiative to work together – the security forces of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand – for intelligence sharing to combat terrorism and radicalism.
Looking forward, Bapak Prabowo and I have also recently agreed to revive and strengthen, together with Delfin Lorenzana of Philippines, the Trilateral Cooperation Arrangement (TCA) formed by Malaysia, Indonesia and Philippines to ensure the safety and the security of the Sulu and Sulawesi seas.
Today, I believe that we have reached a juncture, where we should seriously explore links between initiatives within ASEAN and the security forces of the Gulf nations. We must build on that trust that we have worked so hard to foster for many decades. We must at least expand the sharing of intelligence between our security agencies in a timely and a systematic manner, especially in fighting extremism and terrorism. Indeed, the links between the Gulf and Southeast Asia would amount to a powerful synergy in the fight against terrorism and extremism in the wider global security.
Ladies and gentlemen, this brings me to my final point on looking forward, which is leadership. All this can only happen when we have leaders on both sides, the Gulf and wider Asia, especially ASEAN, who sincerely believe in our shared destiny. Leadership is ever more important, especially as the world slowly and painfully recovers from the ravages of the pandemic.
We need more leaders to invest time and energy to foster stronger links between the Gulf and the wider Asia. We need leaders who share the vision that a prosperous and stable Gulf will have positive externalities for Asia and the world. The relationship must be two-pronged. One, for economic prosperity; and the other, for security to guarantee stability and peace. It must also be multilevel, not just at the top but through different levels of government, intelligence community, businesses and civil societies.
We need to also invest in our youth to guide and cultivate the next generation of leaders to better understand the complexities of Asia and also the complexities of the Gulf, empowering them to connect with like-minded emerging leaders from both regions. Leaders, myself included, must have the foresight and magnanimity to entrust key relationships to the younger generations because this cost of maintaining stability and enhancing prosperity is not the work of only one generation. What’s more, the fruits of today’s labour will only be tasted in the future, and it is a future where many of the current leaders, again myself included, may not even live in.
So ladies and gentlemen, in conclusion, the Gulf and Asia have an opportunity to forge a better future together, especially in the new global landscape as the world transitions into endemicity. We must not squander away this opportunity. We must work hard now to secure the future we want for our children and our grandchildren. We owe it to ourselves to build a solid foundation for this vision of our shared future.
The Gulf and the wider Asia must find more commonalities and nurture them across different sectors. As two regions connected by so many commonalities, we must be able to chart our own joint destiny. We must avoid being pulled away in different directions and forge singularity in vision. Thank you.
Source: iiss
