By Saadet Gokce
ISTANBUL (AA) - Asia-Pacific and Western officials discussed shared security challenges linking Europe and the Indo-Pacific at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday.
Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi outlined three key concerns: growing turbulence in the international order; a strong sense of urgency over the linked security of the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific; and cooperation as the cornerstone of Japan’s alliance with the US, as well as Tokyo’s responsibility to deter and repel any aggression.
“Going forward, Japan will contribute to the stability and peace of the international society,” he said.
Motegi expressed Tokyo's concern about “the advancement of cooperation among China, Russia and North Korea and its impact on regional security,” saying that Japan will continue to monitor the situation "closely."
Dutch Foreign Minister David van Weel highlighted similarities between Europe and the Indo-Pacific across domains such as defense and economy.
“If you look at cyberspace, if you look at hybrid threats, then we are all in the same arena, and we're all facing the same enemies there. If you look at the economic arena, our dependencies and our need to diversify, or the export control measures that we're being hit with, those are all the same,” he said. “We live in one world. We need friends in this very turbulent world.”
Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles said global relations are increasingly power-centered and stressed burden-sharing, adding Canberra wants to be a “better ally” to Washington.
Marles highlighted “the biggest conventional military buildup we've seen in the world since the end of the Second World War, being undertaken by China, but being done so without strategic reassurance.”
“From an Australian point of view, we are very much about working with the US and other partners like Japan to try and put forward deterrence within the Indo-Pacific so that we can maintain peace, stability, and prosperity -- a free and open Indo-Pacific,” he added.
New Zealand Defense Minister Judith Collins described the world as “a very dangerous place at the moment,” urging greater collective awareness.
“We'll have to understand that we can't just keep thinking that we can go on as we have, without significant improvements,” she said. “I would say to you, think about us too, because what happens to us is going to affect you just as what happens to you affects us.”
US Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby emphasized the need to view global affairs as interconnected.
"It's better to keep, to keep jaw-jawing, rather than war-warring, even if there's a crisis or conflict in one or more theaters," he said.