The International IOR conference on its concluding day on Sunday unveiled a ‘Bhubaneswar Declaration’ seeking greater regional cooperation to counter non-traditional security threats like maritime terrorism, piracy and environmental and natural disasters.
The declaration recommended for a special fund and urged heads of IORA member states to participate in summits like in APEC and sought holding of a summit on climate change urgently.
On Cooperation for Energy Security, the declaration noted that world’s most important oil and gas routes traverse the Indian Ocean with roughly 55 per cent of known oil reserves and 40 per cent of gas reserves.
It said the aim of a maritime security framework should be to encourage capacity building to deal with maritime security threats, most significantly terrorism and piracy, while keeping commercial shipping, marine installation and critical infrastructures safe. It added that switching over to renewable energy should be considered on a priority basis.
It said the ‘Indian Ocean Region’ occupies a central position in global strategic land scale and changing security environment of IOR reflects the inter-related geo-political dynamics.
In the context of terrorism and trans-national crime, Bay of Bengal sub-region needs special attention and time-bound action plan for cooperation should be in place, it said, adding that calamity, disaster and regulations of human behaviour needs attention.
“Maritime disputes pose challenges to stability and peace but a legal and technical approach may be reliable for resolution of maritime disputes,” the declaration noted, adding that disaster relief may be addressed through strengthening on institions and cooparation across IONs and IORA should be considered.
Abuot 200 delegates from some 20 countries attended the meet jointly organised by Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS) and Institute of Social and Cultural Studies.