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The Security Environment In The 21st Century |
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(Source: Singapore Ministry of Defence; issued Feb. 25, 2002)
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Keynote Address by Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister For Defence,
Dr Tony Tan Keng Yam, at the
Asia Pacific Security Conference
Singapore, Sunday, 24 February 2002.
Excellencies
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
Security concerns have taken on a new urgency and are now at the top of the agenda for many governments. The terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, the uncovering of terrorist networks here in Southeast Asia they have brought home the reality that all of us are vulnerable.
Now, many governments and security authorities are focused on countering the new form of global terrorism. This requires a paradigm shift and a re-examination of the approaches and responses that were employed to deal with terrorist threats in the past. The new global terrorism is worldwide in scope and organisation. It knows no borders. Singapore and some of our neighbours have come face to face with the threat.
Terrorism may not threaten the survival of a state and it may not defeat a people. But it has shown itself to be a cancer of global proportions that will grow and spread, unless security authorities focus their efforts to destroy the terrorist networks and develop the capabilities to counter the threat in its various forms.
To meet this new threat, Singapore has strengthened our homeland defence. We are developing and enhancing the organisational structures to effectively monitor the threat situation to prevent and pre-empt attacks, and to respond swiftly and effectively should a terrorist attack take place. We are also developing the contingency plans and the capabilities to quickly respond to a wide range of scenarios and types of threats.
But a strong homeland defence alone, while necessary, is not adequate. International cooperation is vital because the terrorist networks and their operations are everywhere. No country is immune, and no country on its own can destroy all the tentacles of the global organisation that is the terrorist threat today. In this new security environment, countries will have to exchange intelligence and share information to help one another, and ultimately make their own preparations to prevail over terrorism.
The global terrorist networks are not the only non-conventional threats to security. Some of the weapons that terrorists use, such as bio-chemical agents and cyber attacks, could be used by other hostile or criminal elements who are not linked to the global terrorist networks. State authorities would need to develop the necessary protections and responses whether or not the global terrorist networks remain a threat.
There are also other security challenges such as piracy and illegal immigration. These are not new problems but they have become more complex and multi-faceted. Globalisation has shrunk the world in more than just the economic sphere. Globalisation has also made us more vulnerable because the security challenges transcend boundaries. Instabilities and problems in one country or region have knock-on effects and the consequences can be far-reaching and pervasive. We saw the devastating effects of the Asian financial crisis just a few years ago. The socio-economic and political problems arising from the Asian financial crisis had consequences for security in the region that are still being felt.
Economics has become increasingly entrenched in the security equation. Without security there can be no economic development. Conversely, stability and security are in serious jeopardy without economic development. This is the basis for the priority that Singapore has placed on ensuring our defence and security since the earliest days of our independence.
This brings me to the other end of the spectrum of security threats. Even as we put considerable efforts into dealing with non-conventional threats, especially the threat of terrorism, we should not forget that the challenge to security is not from such threats alone.
Nations still have to defend their sovereignty and national interests on which they depend for their very survival. The conventional threats have not diminished even as the non-conventional threats have grown. We have seen this for instance in the increased tensions between India and Pakistan. In Singapore’s case, we will ensure that our capability to deter and, if necessary, decisively defeat a conventional security threat is not diminished even as we develop our capabilities to deal with the non-conventional threats.
Towards this end, the Singapore Government will, in both good and bad times, continue to give priority in the allocation of resources to upgrading the capabilities of the Singapore Armed Forces and our other security agencies so that Singapore will remain safe and secure.
Looking at the broader strategic environment in the Asia-Pacific region, it is clear that the potential flashpoints remain. There is the dispute over the Spratly Islands. There are the unresolved issues in the Korean Peninsula, even as tension waxes and wanes. And there is the Taiwan Straits. All these are difficult issues which will take time to resolve.
Overlaying these is the larger issue of Sino-US relations. How the relationship between the United States and China develops will determine the strategic environment in the 21st Century certainly in the Asia-Pacific region, and perhaps even globally. The US is the sole superpower, overwhelmingly more powerful than any other nation or group of nations today. China is a rising power. How these two countries deal with each other, whether they co-exist and cooperate or the relationship is tense and confrontative, will determine the future of the Asia-Pacific region.
A positive cooperative relationship will provide a stable environment and enable sustained development for the region. A negative confrontative relationship will bring tension and instability, perhaps even turmoil. It is therefore in the interest of all regional countries to see friendly relations between the US and China. In this regard, the positive outcome of President Bush’s visit to China this week is an encouraging development.
The role of countries such as Japan and India will also help to shape the Asia-Pacific strategic environment. These countries have the strategic weight to make a difference whether they act in concert with others to help maintain stability and peace, or try to assert themselves.
The security challenges we face in the Asia-Pacific region are diverse and will not be easily overcome. Each of us on our own will have to find our own responses to deal effectively with the security threats which confront us. But that will not be enough. Now, more so than ever, international cooperation is important and necessary. The international community has to work together. The full capabilities of international organisations, particularly the United Nations, should be harnessed to address transnational threats in a more thorough and holistic manner.
Regional and multilateral institutional mechanisms should be similarly utilised to enhance the effectiveness of our responses.
In the Asia-Pacific, while bilateral co-operation between regional countries has been growing in both depth and scope, more can be done to enhance multilateral security structures. One such security structure is the ASEAN Regional Forum. The basic structure and mechanisms of the ARF are already in place, and a number of confidence-building measures have been implemented. However, the ARF can be further developed to promote dialogue and interactions that have greater utility in meeting the security challenges of the future.
To meet the new challenges, creative forms of cooperation should be explored to foster more robust responses that are more coordinated and effective. There is scope for defence officials to play a more active role in the ARF to improve the robustness of our responses to the security challenges in the 21st Century.
At the same time, the capacity of the state to respond to security challenges should also be strengthened. In dealing with the future security challenges that will be more diverse in nature, government agencies, including armed forces, will need to improve their coordination and develop more innovative solutions. In the years ahead, cooperation and coordination among government agencies both within and between states, and now even with non-governmental organisations, would need to be stepped up to provide the comprehensive and multi-faceted responses that are required to meet the security challenges we have to grapple with.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Those of us who are concerned about the security of our nations now also need to be concerned about the security of our own regions and of regions far away. The global village of the economic marketplace is now also our own security backyard. A conflict in another continent, a terrorist attack on the other side of the world we feel the impact immediately and sometimes with quite devastating effects. So it behoves us all to work together more closely in the interest of ensuring our own security.
This inaugural Asia Pacific Security Conference organised by the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies is therefore most timely. I hope that this conference will promote dialogue and facilitate the exchange of views among the government leaders, defence officials and analysts, on the security issues which concern us all and which will have a direct impact on our lives and our futures.
There are many security challenges facing the Asia-Pacific region today, and this conference promises to be an interesting one, with much for the conference participants to discuss. On this note, I wish all participants a successful and rewarding conference.
Thank you.
-ends-
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