Common security? Geopolitics, development, South Asia and the Indian Ocean

Third World Quarterly

Volumn 19, Issue 4, 1998, Pages 701-724

  Chaturvedi, Sanjay ^a  

^a PANJAB UNIVERSITY   (India)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE; GEOPOLITICS; REGIONAL SECURITY; SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT;

ASIA; INDIAN OCEAN;

EID: 0032453428     PISSN: 01436597     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/01436599814208     Document Type: Article

References (99)

1. Simon Dalby, 'Introduction', in G OTuathail, S Dalby & P Routledge (eds), The Geopolitics Reader, London: Routledge, 1998, p 180.
2. Simon Dalby, 'Geopolitical discourse: the Soviet Union as other', Alternatives, 13, 1988, pp 415-442.
3. R B J Walker, Inside/Outside, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993.
4. See, for example, K Booth & S Smith (eds), International Relations Theory Today, Cambridge: Polity, 1995.
5. See S Chaturvedi, The Polar Regions: A Political Geography, Chichesten John Wiley, 1996, pp 1-12;
6. M D Ward (cd), The Ne^v Geopolitics, Philadelphia; PA: Gordon and Breach, 1993;
7. and J Agnew & S Corbridge, 'The new geopolitics: the dynamics of geopolitical disorder' in R J Johnston & P J Taylor (eds), A World in Crisis? Geographical Perspectives, Oxford: Basil Blackwell, pp 266-268.
8. For a detailed elaboration of how the so-called 'security studies' have evolved in the past, see Neta C Crawford, 'Once and future security studies'. Security Studies, 1(2), 1991, pp 283-316.
9. See The Commission of Global Governance, Our Global Neighbourhood, The Report of the Commission on Global Governance, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995, pp 77-84;
10. J Käkönen, "The concept of security: from limited to comprehensive' in Käkönen (ed), Perspectives on Environmental Conflict and International Relations, London: Pinter, 1992;
11. G Allison & G F Trevcrton (eds), Rethinking America's Security: Beyond the Cold War to a New World Order, New York: Norton, 1992;
12. K Booth (cd), New Thinking About Strategy and International Security, London: Harper Collins, 1991;
13. M T Clare & D C Thomas (eds), World Security: Trends and Challenges at Century's End, New York: St Martin's Press, 1994;
14. E Boulding (ed), Ne\v Agendas for Peace Research: Conflict and Security Re-examined, Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 1992;
15. B Buzan, People States and Fear: An Agenda for International Security Studies in the Post-Cold War Era, Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 1991;
16. J J Romm, Defining National Security: The Non-Military Aspects, New York: Council on Foreign Relations, 1993;
17. L Pettiford, 'Changing conceptions of security in the Third World', Third World Quarterly, 17(2), 1996, pp 289-306;
18. P D Senarclens, 'Population and security", International Social Science Journal, XLVI(3) 1994, pp 439-454;
19. and U Vesa, 'Environmental security and the Baltic Sea region', in P Joenniemi (ed), Cooperation in the Baltic Sea Region, Washington, DC: Taylor & Francis, 1993, pp 87-97.
20. See R Langlais, Reformulating Security: A Case Study from Arctic Canada, Göteborg: Humanekologiska Skrifter, 13 (PhD dissertation), 1995.
21. See T Kuehls, Beyond Sovereign Territory: The Space of Ecopolitics, Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 1996;
22. G Porter & J W Brown, Global Environmental Politics, Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 1995;
23. P J Stoett, The environmental enlightenment: security analysis meets ecology', Coexistence: A Revi&v of East-West and Development Issues, 31(2), 1994, pp 127-146; M Zürn, 'Global dangers and international cooperation: are we on the way to a world risk society?'. Law and State: A Biannual Collection of Recent German Contributions to These Fields, 53/54, 1996, pp 69-89.
24. For an insightful elaboration of this theme, see Simon Dalby, 'Ecopolitical discourse: "environmental security" and political geography', Progress in Human Geography, 16(4), 1992, pp 503-522. Also, for an understanding of what 'critical geopolitics' stands for, see G ÖTuathail, Critical Geopolitics, pp 57-74; K J Dodds & J D Sidaway, 'Locating critical geopolitics", Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 12(5), 1994, pp 515-524.
25. Dalby, 'Introduction'.
26. V Shiva, "The greening of global reach' in J Brecher, J B Childs & J Cutler (eds), Global Visions: Beyond the New World Order, Boston, MA: South End Press, 1993 pp 53-55.
27. Ibid, p 55.
28. Agnew & Corbridge, Mastering Space, pp 164-207.
29. For a useful discussion on the various aspects of this theme, see M Gadgil & R Guha, Ecology and Equity: The Use and Abuse of Nature in Contemporary India, London: Roulledge, 1995; Chaturvedi, The Polar Regions, pp 8-9; M K K Peng, 'Reforming north economy, south development, and world economic order', in Brecher, Childs & Cutler, Global Visions: Beyond the Ne\v World Order, pp 163-174.
30. Simon Dalby, 'Security, modernity and ecology: the dilemmas of post-cold war security discourse", Alternatives, 17(1), 1992, pp 95-134; and Adil Najam, 'The South in international environmental negotiations'. International Studies 31(4), 1994, pp 427-464.
31. DC Körten & R Klauss (cds), People Centred Development: Contributions Towards Theory and Planning Frameworks, West Hartford CT: Kumarian Press, 1984.
32. G ÖTuathail, Critical Geopolitics, p 253.
33. See G Porter, 'Environmental security as a national security issue' in 0 Tuathail, Dalby & Routledge, The Geopolitics Reader, pp 220-221.
34. See V F Tsarev, 'Peaceful uses of the seas: principles and complexities, Marine Policy, 12(2), 1988, pp 153-159.
35. See Biliana Cicin-Sain, 'Multiple use conflicts and their resolution: toward a comparative research agenda', in P Fabbri (ed), Ocean Management in Global Change, London: Elsevier Science, 1992, pp 280-307.
36. For a useful survey of the development of sea fisheries, with special reference to the work of the FAO, see S M Garcia, 'Ocean fisheries management: the FAO programme' in Fabbri, Ocean Management in Global Change, pp 381-418;
37. and P Weber, 'Safeguarding oceans' in Lester & Brown (ed) State of the World 1994 a world watch institute report on progress toward a sustainable society, London: Earthscan Publications, 1994, pp 41-60.
38. A Majecd (ed), Indian Ocean: Conflict & Regional Cooperation, New Delhi: ABC Publishing, 1986; and
39. R B Rais, The Indian Ocean and the Superpowers: Economic, Political and Strategic Perspectives, New Delhi: Vistaar Publications, 1987.
40. See S Chaturvedi, The Arctic today: new thinking, new visions, old power structures, in J Käkönen (ed), Dreaming of the Barents Regions: Interpreting Cooperation in the Euro-Arctic Rim, Tampere: Tampere Peace Research Institute, 1996, pp 23-54; O Tunander, Cold War Geopolitics: The Maritime Strategy and Geopolitics of the Northern Front, London: Sage, 1989.
41. Sec M I Glassncr, Political Geography, New York, John Wiley, 1993, p 522, emphasis added.
42. Sec A D Couper, 'History of ocean management', in Fabbri, Ocean Management in Global Change, pp 9-11.
43. For a critical assessment of the negotiating process problems and issues associated with UNCLOS III, see R L Friedheim, Negotiating the New Ocean Regime, Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, 1993.
44. On 28 July 1994 the UN General Assembly adopted an agreement relating to the implementation of Part XI of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. The agreement modifies de facto a number of provisions of the convention relating to deep seabed mining, which had been the major obstacle for ratification of or accession to the convention by industrialised states. For a thorough discussion on the subject, see M Hayashi, 'The 1994 Agreement for the Universalisation of the Law of the Sea Convention", Ocean Development and International Law, 27(3), 1996, pp 31-39.
45. For a concise and insightful analysis of these issues, see E M Borgcse, Ocean Governance and the United Nations, Hallifax, NS: Dalhousie University, Centre for Foreign Policy Studies, 1995, pp 13-34;
46. and T A Clingan, Jr, "The Law of the Sea Convention: international obligations and stewardship responsibilities of coastal nations'. Ocean & Coastal Management, 17(2), 1992, pp 201-215.
47. W T Burke, 'Importance of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and its future development", Ocean Development and International Law, 27(3), 1996, p 3; and Clingan, Jr, "The Law of the Sea Convention', pp 205-206.
48. For a discussion on how the objections by the United States to Part XI of the 1982 Convention have been sorted out by the 1994 Implementation Agreement, sec C C Joyner, 'The United States and the new law of the sea". Ocean Development and International Law, 27(3), 1996, pp 41-58.
49. A Pardo, 'The common heritage of mankind', Malta: University of Malta, 1974; P S Rao, 'Public order of oceans: problems and prospects', Indian Journal of International Law, 17(2), 1977, pp 220-221.
50. A Pardo, "The common heritage of mankind revisited', keynote address to the 13th Yokohma 21 Century Forum: 'New Era for the World's Oceans', 21 November 1996. See also, A Pardo & C Q Christol, 'The common interest: tension between the whole and the parts', in R St J Macdonald & D M Johnston (cds), The Structure and Process of International Law, The Hague: Martinus Nijhof, 1983, pp 647-655.
51. Pardo & Christol, "The common interest'.
52. See M W Zacher & J G McConnell, 'Down to the sea with stakes: the evolving law of the sea and the future of the deep seabed regime', Ocean Development and International Law, 21(2), 1990, pp 71-103.
53. S P Johnson, The Earth Summit: The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, London: Graham & Trotman/Martinus Nijhoff, 1993; and
54. P Chatterjee & M Finger, The Earth Brokers: Power, Politics and World Development, London: Routledge, 1996. See also T Doyle, 'Sustainable development and Agenda 21: the secular bible of global free markets and pluralist democracy' in this issue of Third World Quarterly.
55. For an insightful discussion see T Brenton, The Greening of Machiavel!!: The Evolution of International Environmental Politics, London: Earthscan Publications, 1994, pp 125-236.
56. Cicin-Sain Knecht, 'Implications of the Earth Summit for ocean and coastal governance", pp 337-338.
57. For an elaboration of 'anti-geopolitics', which challenges the notion that the interests of the state's political class are identical to the community's interests see P Routledge, 'Introduction to Anti-Geopolitics", in 0 Tuathail, Dalby & Routledge, The Geopolitics Reader, pp 245-255.
58. G O Tuathail, A Herod & S M Roberts, 'Negotiating unruly problematics', in 0 Tuathail, Herod & Roberts (eds), Unruly World? Globalizalion, Governance and Geography, London: Routledge, 1998, p 7.
59. Cicin-Sain & Knecht, 'Implications of the Earth Summit for ocean and coastal governance, pp 328-330.
60. Patricia W Bimie, 'The Law of the Sea and the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development', Ocean Yearbook, 10, 1993, pp 20-22.
61. Cicin-Sain & Knecht, 'Implications of the Earth Summit for ocean and coastal governance'.
62. Ibid.
63. LMES were defined as 'regions with unique hydrographie regimes, submarine topography, and tropicallylinked populations'. The potential of the concept as a good tool for ocean management notwithstanding, there was a fear among many developing countries, especially Latin American states, that the legal status of the EEZ and national control over all living and non-living resources in ocean areas out to 200 miles offshore could be jeopardised by the LMES. A major distinction was thus retained in Chapter 17 between management of living marine resources in EEZS (not LMES) and management of living marine resources in the high seas. At the same time, an attempt by the developed countries, especially the United States, to reinforce and extend concepts of national duties and obligations towards living marine resources in both high seas and national jurisdiction zones under 'one category' was resisted by the developing countries. See Cicin-Sain & Knecht, 'Implications of the Earth Summit for ocean and coastal governance', pp 339-340.
64. Burke, 'Importance of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and its future development', pp 1-3.
65. D A Ballon, 'Strengthening the law of the sea: the new Agreement on Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks', Ocean Development and International Law, 25(3), 1996, pp 125-151.
66. Cicin-Sain & Knecht, 'Implications of the Earth Summit for ocean and coastal governance', p 340.
67. P Mofson, 'Global Ecopolitics', in G J Dcmko & W B Wood (eds). Reordering the World: Geopolitical Perspectives on the 21st Century, Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1994, p 171.
68. R A Falk, On Humane Governance: Towards a New Global Politics, Cambridge: Polity, 1995.
69. To cite one example, in preparation for the Rio Summit, the UNCED Secretariat had worked out some rather detailed calculations of the costs for the implementation of Agenda 21 as well as the funding from international sources that should be available to assist developing countries in this process. The figures suggested as average annual costs for Chapter 17 alone arc indicative of orders of magnititude. Whereas the total annual costs for all the seven programmes were estimated to be $13 142000000, the total funding available from international sources was $902000000. Divided by roughly 120 developing countries, the average annual contribution from international funding sources would be about $7510 000. Net total annual cost per average developing country would be in the order of $73 000 000 minus $7 510 000 = $65 490 000. The question is not whether additional international funding, from new sources, is needed or not but who would pay for it? Sec Borgese, Ocean Governance and the United Nations, pp 62-63.
70. Mofson, 'Ecopolitics', p 172.
71. See 'Independent World Commission on the Oceans', Background Note, Madras: Secretariat for the Indian Ocean Region, International Ocean Institute Operational Centre (India), 1996.
72. A Vallega, Sea Management: A Theoretical Approach, London: Elsevier Science, 1992.
73. Independent World Commission on the Oceans, Background Note, pp 23-25.
74. For a useful summary of the mandate before the Independent World Commission on the Oceans see Voices for the Oceans, pp 171-184.
75. The Indian Ocean, the smallest of the three oceans, spans the southern hemisphere from the Cape of Good Hope (Southern Africa) to Cape Leeuwin (Western Australia) and is divided into two almost equal halves by the Indian peninsula. For the purposes of this paper, the Indian Ocean region comprises all the littoral and island states of the Indian Ocean. Also included-in accordance with the broad principles of the 1982 UNCLOS regarding the rights of landlocked states in the EEZS of coastal states of the same subregion or region (primarily Art 69), their right of access to and from the sea (Art 125), and their participation in the benefits of mining of the deep seabed (Art 140)-are the landlocked states of East Africa and South Asia. These states largely depend on access to the Indian Ocean for trade and resources. In addition to these independent states, there arc the small island territories of either littoral or non-littoral states. France (Réunion, St Paul, Amsterdam, Kerguelen and Crozet Islands), the UK (the British Indian Ocean Territory-the Chagos Archipelago), Australia (Cocos, Christmas, Heard and Macdonald Islands), India (Andaman, Nicobar and Lakshadwecp Islands), South Africa (Prince Edward Island) and Yemen (Socotra) all have offshore territory in the Indian Ocean generating extensive EEZS. Besides France and the UK there are other non-littoral countries or entities which claim to have a 'vital' stake in the Indian Ocean and its affairs, including the US, the EU, Germany and Japan, because of their extensive trade, shipping and geostrategic interests.
76. G Murthi, 'The Indian Ocean Rim initiative'. Journal of Indian Ocean Studies, 3(2), 1996, pp 156-157.
77. See S Z Qasim, Glimpses of the Indian Ocean, Hyderabad: Universities Press, 1998, pp 80-87.
78. Madan Mohan Puri, 'Persian Gulf geopolitics', International Studies, 30(4), 1993, pp 437-474.
79. M Khalid, 'Technological environment in the Indian Ocean: a study of potential for cooperation or conflict in the region', unpublished thesis submitted to the Panjab University for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts, 1992.
80. On how the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea has transformed the political geography of the sea, including the Indian Ocean, sec M I Glassner, Neptune's Domain: A Political Geography of the Sea, London: Unwin Hyman, 1990.
81. R A Falk, On Humane Governance, pp 134-171.
82. See International Collective in Support of Fishworkers, Madras, 'Fisheries management in the Indian Ocean region: need for new approach", in R Rajagopalan (ed). Voices for the Oceans: A. Report to the Independent World Commission on the Oceans, Madras: International Ocean Institute, 1996, p 96.
83. R Rajagopalan & L Surendra, 'Protecting local communities, their resources and their environment: the case of shrimp aquaculture in South India", in Rajagopalan, Voices for the Oceans, p 121.
84. V Shiva, Ecology and the Politics of Survival: Conflicts Over Natural Resources in India, Tokyo: United Nations University Press New Delhi: Sage Publications, 1991, p 318.
85. See Rahul Roy-Chaudhry, 'Maritime security in the Indian Ocean region". Maritime Studies, 90, 1996, p 4; V Suryanarayan, "The Maldives and India's security1 in S Chandra, B Arunachalam & V Suryanarayan (eds), The Indian Ocean and its Islands: Strategic, Scientific and Historical Perspectives, New Delhi: Sage, 1993. pp 107-116.
86. Sec United Nations, 'Earth Summit: programme of Action for Small Island States', Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, Bridgetown, Barbados, 26 April-6 May 1994. pp 1-51.
87. See D Filkins, 'Maldives may vanish if sea level rises', The Pioneer, New Delhi, 17 December 1997, p 8.
88. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), an intergovernmental scientific body, a doubling of atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide and other gases that trap heat in the atmosphere (compared with that of the previous century) could increase average global temperatures by 1.5 degrees centigrade. Such increases could raise sea levels by about one to one and a half feet by 2050, flooding coastal lowland plains and wetlands worldwide. For more details on climate change and global warming see World Resources: A Guide to the Global Environment 1996-97 (A joint publication of the World Resources Institute, UNEP, UNDP and the World Bank), New York: Oxford University Press, 1996, pp 315-325.
89. G ÖTuathail & J Agnew, 'Geopolitics and discourse: practical geopolitical reasoning in American foreign policy", Political Geography, 11(2), 1992, pp 190-204.
90. For the historical background of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, see K S Jawatkar, Diego Garcia in International Diplomacy, Bombay: Popular Prakashan, 1983.
91. See W Walker, 'International nuclear relations after the Indian and Pakistani test explosions', International Relations, 74(3). 1998, 505-528.
92. Uday Bhaskar, 'Visit to Myanmar", Journal of Indian Ocean Studies, 2(1), 1994, pp 68-69. For a greater flavour of the strategic arguments of this nature, see also Air Commodore N B Singh, 'Post Gulf War strategies in the Indian Ocean", Journal of Indian Ocean Studies, 2(2), 1995, pp 144-152; Swaran Singh, 'Myanmar China's gateway to the Indian Ocean", Journal of Indian Ocean Studies, 3(1), 1995, pp 80-87; Swaran Singh, 'China's changing maritime strategy: implications for Indian Ocean region', Journal of Indian Ocean Studies, 5(1), 1997, pp 1-12; and Hideyuki Takahashi, 'New Japanese role in the Indian Ocean: changing from economic giant to great power", Journal of Indian Ocean Studies, 5(1), 1997, pp21-34;
93. Uday Bhaskar, 'Joint naval exercises in the Indian Ocean", Journal of Indian Ocean Studies, 1(1), 1993, pp 15-18.
94. M Finger, "The military, the nation state and the environment", in 0 Tuathail et al. The Geopolitics Reader, pp 224-228.
95. R Roy-Chaudhry, 'Maritime security in the Indian Ocean", p 3. But sec also S Z Qasim, Glimpses of the Indian Ocean, Hyderabad: University Press, 1998.
96. S Bateman & A Bergin, 'Building blocks for maritime security in the Indian Ocean', Ocean Development and International Law, 27(3), 1996, pp 243-24.
97. Dcrek McDougall, 'The Indian Ocean Commission: regional cooperation in the south-west Indian ocean", The Round Table, 332, 1994, pp 464-465.
98. For useful information and analysis on the nature, scope and promise of IOR-ARC sec Rajesh Mehta, 'Indian Ocean Rim: economic and trade issues'. Strategic Analysis, 20(2), 1997, pp 243-261; David Burrows, "The Indian Ocean Rim Initiative: a comparative Indian and South African perspective", Strategic Analysis, 20(2), 1997, pp 233-242; V K Grover, 'India and the Indian Ocean Rim community', Journal of Indian Ocean Studies, 2(3), 1995, pp 219-222; Mihir Roy, 'Indian Ocean trading blocks-cure for Afro-Asian seablindness". Journal of Indian Ocean Studies, 2(3), 1995, pp 223-228; and Rahul Roy-Choudhry, "The Indian Ocean Rim-Association for Regional Co-operation: an overview", World Affairs: The Journal of International Issues, 1(3), 1997, p 45.
99. Emphasis added. For the text of the Resolution on the Adoption of the Charter of the Indian Ocean Rim-Association for Regional Cooperation, First Ministerial Meeting Mauritius 5-7 March 1997, see World Affairs: The Journal of International Issues, 1(2) 1997, pp 161-166.