Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative

Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen kicked off his rotational chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) with characteristic “cowboy diplomacy.” Just months after the regional organization disinvited Myanmar’s junta leaders from regional meetings due to the lack of progress on the implementation the “Five Point Consensus”, the Cambodia leader became the first head […]

In March 2021 the UK government published its “Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy: Global Britain in a Competitive Age,” commonly known as the “Integrated Review.” The two pages devoted to framing the United Kingdom’s “Indo-Pacific tilt” represent the clearest statement to date regarding the country’s official intent to expand and deepen […]

China’s brazen interference in a routine resupply mission to a Philippine outpost reveals Beijing’s growing capability to act on developments that it thinks may impact its interests—expansively defined—in the contested South China Sea. On November 16, two Philippine civilian boats delivering provisions to the moored BRP Sierra Madre at Second Thomas Shoal (called Ayungin Shoal […]

This article is part of Conceptualization of “Maritime Security” in Southeast Asia, a series of analyses produced by experts convened by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. Former Senior Fellow in the RSIS Maritime Security Programme Commodore Sam Bateman (RAN, retd) observed over a decade ago that a fundamental issue that arises when considering […]

This article is part of Conceptualization of “Maritime Security” in Southeast Asia, a series of analyses produced by experts convened by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. “Maritime security” in the United States’ national language English is the working language of the U.S. government. The term “maritime security” is a catch-all in U.S. policy […]

On September 15, 2021, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States announced the formation of a technology-sharing accord called AUKUS. The accord underscores the three countries’ commitment to deepen diplomatic, security, and defense cooperation in the Indo-Pacific to meet the challenges of the twenty-first century. The agreement’s first announced goal is to create a […]

This article is part of Conceptualization of “Maritime Security” in Southeast Asia, a series of analyses produced by experts convened by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. “Maritime security” in India’s national language. While India does not have a national language, Hindi and English are designated “official” languages for use by the government. The […]

This article is part of Conceptualization of “Maritime Security” in Southeast Asia, a series of analyses produced by experts convened by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. “Maritime security” in Australia’s national language English is the national language of Australia. Australia’s definition of “maritime security” A search of relevant government publications (see below) does […]

This article is part of Conceptualization of “Maritime Security” in Southeast Asia, a series of analyses produced by experts convened by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. “Maritime security” Japan’s national language. “海洋安全保障 (Kaiyo anzen hosho)” is the most commonly used phrase for maritime security in Japanese. The phrase consists of three words. The […]

At the 9th Philippines-Vietnam Joint Permanent Working Group on Maritime and Ocean Concerns (JPWG-MOC), held on November 17, both countries agreed to resume bilateral joint maritime scientific research which has been stopped since 2007. This move has been welcomed by supporters of science diplomacy in the region as it will help boost cooperation in marine […]