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AMAN naval exercise: When cooperation, mutual understanding are key

The AMAN-2019 multinational naval exercise held in Karachi, Pakistan concluded recently with participating nations sharing their skills and knowledge in countering transnational security problems such as terrorism, piracy and smuggling, as well as mitigating natural disasters worldwide

The Jakarta Post
Mon, February 18, 2019

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AMAN naval exercise: When cooperation, mutual understanding are key

The AMAN-2019 multinational naval exercise held in Karachi, Pakistan concluded recently with participating nations sharing their skills and knowledge in countering transnational security problems such as terrorism, piracy and smuggling, as well as mitigating natural disasters worldwide. This year’s event was the sixth edition of the biennial exercise hosted by the Pakistan Navy. The Jakarta Post’s Imanuddin Razak was among dozens of international journalists invited to take a closer look at the organization of the maritime event.

The Indian Ocean has been rapidly becoming a new center of economic gravity as it binds together economic fortunes through its strategic waterways to the other two global oceans — the Atlantic and the Pacific. As a consequence, it is of vital importance that the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) remain a safe and secure place for maritime activities of all nations making use of the region’s waterways.

However, it is without a doubt that the region manifests various symptoms and sources of insecurity. Emerging threats and challenges of the 21st century common to the entire region, ranging from transnational maritime crimes to natural disasters and political instability — inclusive of interstate rivalries — all have the potential to threaten the freedom of navigation of the high seas and simultaneously cripple the world economy.

Modern-era analysis of trends, techniques and the magnitude of challenges have indicated that traditional ways of mitigating these threats and maritime power projection may no longer be valid on account of the vastness of maritime space. It is therefore almost impossible for a single state to handle maritime threats on its own.

Various studies have suggested that a viable collaborative security mechanism, mutual cooperation, the creation of regional frameworks of information sharing and creating broad-based alliances and partnerships are needed to reduce, if not eliminate, the existing threats in the Indian Ocean; thus promoting peace and prosperity in the region.

Pakistan enjoys a very unique geostrategic location close to the Gulf of Oman and Strait of Hormuz, through which nearly 30 percent of the world’s energy trades. Pakistan’s 90 percent trade is seaborne and almost 100 percent of its energy imports are transported through the sea.

Pakistan, however, realizes that it cannot prosper on its own and needs to collaborate with others. One of the key measures it had taken was the establishment of strategic economic cooperation with China through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), essentially a collection of infrastructure projects, numerous energy projects and special economic zones throughout Pakistan.

Under such circumstances, Pakistan, as a littoral state in the IOR and in view of the gigantic CPEC projects, has interest in having a safe and secure region not only for its own economic and political benefits but also other countries of interest. The Pakistan Navy has been employing a multilateral approach and engaging national and regional stakeholders to fight the prevailing and potential maritime threats in the IOR.

In practice, the Pakistan Navy has contributed significantly to the Enduring Freedom operation, the official name used by the United States government for the global war on terrorism, established the Joint Maritime Information and Coordination Center for information sharing and coordination purposes, and through the most recent initiative in the form of regional maritime security patrol (RMSP) to achieve and sustain maritime order in the region.

Above all the initiatives, hosting the biennial AMAN (or peace in Pakistan’s national Urdu language) multinational naval exercise since 2007 is a regular event that Pakistan — the Pakistan Navy in particular — has continuously organized in its search for collaborative efforts to establish peace and order in the IOR.

“Exercise AMAN is a manifestation of Pakistan’s sincere commitment toward peace and stability, which is aptly reflected in its motto ‘Together for Peace’, bringing the navies of the East and the West together under a common platform for the good of global economies,” Pakistan Navy staff chief Adm. Zafar Mahmood Abbasi told the opening of the International Maritime Conference (IMC) on Feb. 9.

JP/Courtesy of Pakistan Navy
JP/Courtesy of Pakistan Navy

“[…] The Indian Ocean provides the most important trade routes and energy corridors, linking the region and its resources to countries across the world. It is therefore imperative to protect these resources and sea lines of communication from traditional and nontraditional threats,” he added.

Pakistan’s initiative in establishing peace and order in the IOR has won the support of the US.

“The United States and Pakistan have long established good relations […] And Pakistan’s role [to help create peace and order in the IOR] is of critical importance,” Former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States of America, Adm. (ret) William A. Owens, said while addressing one session of the IMC.

Similarly, China has also expressed its support for Pakistan’s initiative in view of the IOR’s high economic and strategic significance given its location connecting the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.

“As a non-Indian Ocean bordering state, China also has its own interest in the safety of sea lane of communication and energy security in the region […] Facing the challenging security environment, China and the IOR states should work together for a common, cooperative and sustainable security goal for the region’s future,” said Yan Yan, director of the Research Center of Ocean Law and Policy, People’s Republic of China, in a separate session of the IMC.

The peace initiatives taken by Pakistan have come amid its prolonged conflict with its neighbor India. Pakistan has so far engaged in three wars with India — one during its separation from India and the other two on the Kashmir issue.

Apart from the Kashmir issue, terrorism is an issue in some parts of the region, particularly in areas bordering Afghanistan, where suspected terrorists escaping government pursuit are seeking refuge.

Measures have been taken to contain terrorism. And again, Pakistan cannot do it all alone. Despite all the controversy, the raid of the hiding place and eventual killing of the founder of al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, by US Navy Seals within the Pakistan territory of Abbottabad in May 2011, was an obvious element of Pakistan’s willingness to settle this terrorism problem once and for all.

Threats of terrorism, along with prolonged conflict with India over Kashmir, continue to exist and haunt Pakistan’s dream of having a stable and peaceful nation. And the AMAN joint naval exercise is apparently among measures taken to realize that dream. Through such joint military exercises, participating nations, including host Pakistan, learn from each other on how to combat transnational problems, including terrorism.

In view of the prolonged bilateral conflict, a big question mark, however, should be placed on the organization of the AMAN exercise, as it has been repeatedly held without India’s participation. Perhaps India’s participation in future exercises would help pave the way for improved India-Pakistan relations and eventually bring an end to the prolonged conflict.

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