British ministers attend IISS Shangri-La Dialogue to promote security in the Indo-Pacific

How powerful is Britain today? Does Britain count as a global power? Whatever Britain's exact position in the international global order, any ambitions of global influence are contingent on the effective exercise of foreign policy in regions outside of Europe.

With the war between Russia and Ukraine ranging on, the minds of foreign policy decision-makers are rightly focused on collective defence in Europe. Accordingly, NATO has been hot on the agenda recently, with the alliance exercising its military capacity in Eastern Europe to make a geopolitical point in response to Russia's invasion.

However, also on the foreign policy agenda in recent days has been the 2023 IISS Shangri-La Dialogue. From the second to the fourth of June, ministers and global leaders met in Singapore at Asia's "foremost defence summit" to address international security issues in a series of plenary sessions and bilateral discussions.

Representing Britain was the Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and Foreign, Commonwealth, & Development Office (FCDO) Minister of State, Anne-Marie Trevelyan.

The Defense Secretary held several bilateral meetings with ministers from Singapore, China, Indonesia, and New Zealand. In his meeting with Singapore's Defence Minister Dr Ng Eng Hen, discussions were had over Britain's partnership with Singapore, particularly in relation to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA).

The FPDA dates back to 1971, with members including Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, and Britain. Member-states cooperate to buttress the security and stability of the Indo-Pacific region. FPDA Defence Ministers met on the third of June and discussed the "continued collaboration" and the strengthening of the group.

Britain's diplomatic presence in the Indo-Pacific is also bolstered by its Dialogue Partner status with ASEAN which the government achieved back in 2021. ASEAN dates back to 1967 and is now compromised of 10 member-states including Singapore. Whilst Britain is not a full member of ASEAN, dialogue partner status enables deeper cooperation across a variety of issues including trade, investment, climate change, the environment, science and technology, and education.

On the subject of the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue, the foreign office has highlighted how the attendance of the two ministers reflects Britain's commitment to the Indo-Pacific region. Moreover, the region is of important strategic value, not least economically.

By 2030, over 40 per cent of global GDP is expected to have come from the Indo-Pacific. Furthermore, 60 per cent of global trade passes through shipping lanes in the region. Given Britain's tilt towards the Indo-Pacific in terms of international trade, this makes security in the region a priority for the government.

Trevelyan has stated that the "security and prosperity" of the "Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific" regions are more interwoven "than ever before." Therefore, Britain must "work jointly to protect the rules-based international order to safeguard our futures." Similarly, Wallace said that "Atlantic and Indo-Pacific security is indivisible."

The Defense Secretary's Address

The Defense Secretary spoke at the 2nd plenary session of the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue alongside ministers representing Canada and the Philippines. Wallace used his address to explain how a balanced and stable Indo-Pacific can be achieved.

However, prior to this, he also made some insightful comments which indicate the mindset of the British government towards the Indo-Pacific.

Given the economic opportunities presented by the Indo-Pacific, Wallace explained that the British government "considers our interests to lie as much here as they do in Europe." Therefore, Britain's wish to benefit from the growth and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific also demands the responsibility of contributing to security in the region, the Defense Secretary explained. In other words, if Britain wishes to be a global trading nation with strong ties with the Indo-Pacific, we also need to be a key player in international security to ensure the region is stable.

On the challenge of maintaining international security in the Indo-Pacific, Wallace proceeded to mention China's "epoch-defining" rise. China's weight as a global power means that without Beijing's cooperation "none of our most fundamental global issues can be solved," he explained. They include "climate change, energy and food security, economic stagnation, tech regulation," and "nuclear proliferation."

Furthermore, whilst opportunities for prosperity and trade come from China's rise, their international approach presents important challenges, including "illegal fishing, tensions in territorial waters, sovereignty disputes, and debt diplomacy" according to Wallace.

So given the security challenges of the Indo-Pacific region, including those presented by China, how can stability and security be ensured?

Firstly, the Defense Secretary explained that international rules must be upheld, and common standards must be promoted.

The attempt to invade Ukraine by Russia is an example of a breaching of a rules-based international system according to Wallace. But what exactly is that system? Wallace referred to the establishment of the UN charter after the Second World War, explaining how Russia played a hand in creating this system.

Moreover, Putin's invasion reflects a "might is right" approach to international order, one which Wallace implies to be contradictory to the idea of a rules-based international system which values sovereignty and human rights.

The rules of the international order "apply to us all, regardless of actor or geography," Wallace explained. By implication, this includes anti-Western powers like China and Russia. However, in a multipolar global order with no dominant hegemonic force, it seems hard to deny that greater powers are more likely to get away with using brute force at their convenience.

Secondly, nation-states must pursue free trade. Free trade is one of Britain's historical international values according to Wallace, who argued that decoupling "commercially or diplomatically" is unaffordable.

The Defense Secretary went on to refer to Britain's trade deals in the Indo-Pacific. This year, Britain gained access to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), an Indo-Pacific trading bloc with a combined GDP of £11 trillion. Moreover, the objective of international trade should be "diversification", as opposed to "protectionism."

Thirdly, through promoting British principles and values.

Addressing the nation-states present at the session, Wallace referred to the sharing of "many of the same principles and values." These include a conviction for national independence with nation-states making their own way in the world, a commitment to the "importance of global trade," and most importantly "a belief in fair play."

Furthermore, the idea that respect should be observed between nation-states is reinforced by UN conventions according to Wallace. The Defence Secretary then eluded to the global role the British government seeks to play, pointing out Britain's "responsibility" to "uphold those rules around the globe" as a permanent member of the UN Security Council.