14th asia security summit the iiss shangri

International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS)
The 14th Shangri-La Dialogue
14TH ASIA SECURITY SUMMIT
THE IISS SHANGRI-LA DIALOGUE
FOURTH PLENARY SESSION
STRENGTHENING REGIONAL ORDER IN THE
ASIA-PACIFIC: TOWARDS MORE ACTIVE
CONFLICT RESOLUTION AND COOPERATION
SUNDAY 31 MAY 2015
DR URSULA VON DER LEYEN,
FEDERAL MINISTER OF DEFENCE, GERMANY
31 May 2015
As Delivered
International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS)
The 14th Shangri-La Dialogue
As Prepared, Check Against Delivery
Dear Dr. Chipman,
dear colleagues,
ladies and gentlemen!
First of all thank you very much for inviting me to this important
conference – a conference at which the security of half of the global
population is discussed. I am participating in the year of the
50th anniversary of diplomatic Relations between Germany and Singapore.
These Relations are flourishing – especially in the field of security policy. I
am visiting real friends and an important partner here in Singapore.
I am here at this conference to listen and to learn. As I did in India this
weekwhen I had the opportunity to meet Prime Minister Modi. In the last
two days I talked to some of my colleagues from Asia-Pacific and listened
to the interesting panels.
As a European I draw one main conclusion: Even though the security
challenges in Europe and Asia are not the same, they are very similar. We
see: transnational terrorism, failing states, a trend towards military power
projection, increasing territorial conflicts. And more could be added to the
list. How we address these challenges will certainly follow different lines of
reasoning. In Europe and Asia respectively – after all, we all have our own
established cultural traditions.
I want to share with you our lessons learned. As the German Minister of
Defence
I want to tell you that we have not forgotten our history. This year we
commemorate
the 70th anniversary of end of World War II. We have not forgotten that it
was us – the Germans – who caused death and disaster in World War II.
But we have also not forgotten that at the end of the war, it were our
former enemies – especially our American friends and allies - who
stretched out their hands to take us back into the circle of democratic
countries. It was extremely wise of the USA and the Allies
not to weaken and suppress the defeated Germany – but to invest and
help Germany and Western Europe to rise and prosper. As Ashton Carter
31 May 2015
As Delivered
International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS)
The 14th Shangri-La Dialogue
said: “Everybody rises and everybody wins since 70 years”. And Europe is
the living proof of this.
There is a second lesson learned: The Marshall-Plan was an enormous help
but it was just the beginning. We worked hard on expanding our SMEs and
they flourished,
because German ships could navigate all over the world, delivering goods
to New York, Shanghai and St. Petersburg – just to name some. And
German companies could invest everywhere. The trading companies made
friends all over the world. This did not happen by chance. The free trade
was possible, because every nation respected the freedom of the sea. And
this is what this conference is all about: Stability, security and prosperity
are indivisible – none of them can exist without the others.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
This is never for granted: There were many setbacks, crises and conflicts
to be overcome. The bumpy road taught us that we need an overarching
security architecture. Thus we invested in partnerships and alliances. And
Germany grew by investing in the European Union: by building the
common market, by opening up our national borders, by transferring our
currency, the Deutsche Mark, into the Euro….
We partly gave up national sovereignty but we gained way more economic
and political power.
Or look at another alliance: In NATO we are engaged in collective defence
of 28 transatlantic partners. NATO is the strongest political and military
alliance ever. But NATO is also the daily experience of solidarity: The
security concerns of each single partner counts – period! For example: We
Germans are doing the Air Policing for our Baltic partners at their borders
with EUROFIGHTERS together with many other NATO-nations. The same
goes for maritime patrolling with our Scandinavian partners, the USA and
the Netherlands. For this we put German ships under Dutch command.
The OSCE is another example for security architecture. When the RussianUkraine conflict started, we were glad to have the OSCE. It plays an
important role in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. It offered the natural room
where the EU, UKR and RUS
31 May 2015
As Delivered
International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS)
The 14th Shangri-La Dialogue
are sitting at the same table. Nobody had to be invited: The negotiation
table was there since years. And this opened up room to agree on
principles for a solution –
the so-called Minsk-agreement. The OSCE follows the principles of
transparency and confidence building. Believe me: It is not easy to literally
open the books… But we know that transparency is the key for trust and
confidence.
Now what is the added value of all this for our security? Our experiences
show that there are 5 key elements:
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First: We have structured procedures to offer a constant dialogue on
conflict prevention and conflict handling.
Second: We define binding rules and respect the rule of law.
Third: we gain trust through transparency.
Fourth: A sustainable security architecture is never against any
country. On the contrary: the philosophy is that it is for the benefit of
all. Even through the Ukraine crisis NATO and EU always said: We
want a future with Russia. We are neighbours.
Fifth: Strategically spoken: together we are relevant – on our own,
we are not.
Yes, of course alliances are hard work: they need investment; It’s a
constant compromise; sometimes we fight hard about details - but it is
worth it! The smaller counties benefit as much as the bigger ones. The
decision making process
requires to convince and not to dominate. It forces to argue on the rule of
law and not on historic claims.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In a globalized world our economic wellbeing is interlinked - and so is our
security.
Stability and security in East- und South-East-Asia is first of all your
concern. But it is ours, too. We Europeans are ready to share our
experiences – and learn from yours.
As ASEAN is intensifying its focus on security, including its outreach to
China,
31 May 2015
As Delivered
International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS)
The 14th Shangri-La Dialogue
cooperation between ASEAN and the EU’s common Defence and Security
policy should intensify. The globalized world is more and more one, But it
is far from being united. Dialogue and the sharing of expertise across the
continents should lead to a world that is more united, more stable and
safer.
31 May 2015
As Delivered

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