Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen

                        I am very pleased to join you this morning for the 32nd Oceans Conference on “Freedom of Seas, Passage Rights and 1982 Law of the Sea Convention” jointly organised by the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies and the University of Virginia School of Law’s Center for Ocean Law and Policy.  I have very fond memories of doing my sabbatical at the centre in Charlottesville, Virginia, of course many years ago before entering politics.

2                      A few years ago in 2005, I gave the keynote address in this series of conferences in Xiamen, China, and I am glad to be still associated with this important series of conferences organised by my good friends and colleagues in the Law of the Sea community namely Professors John Norton Moore and Myron Nordquist. I also welcome other long time friends, as well as newcomers, to Singapore.

3                      A quarter century has passed since the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) was adopted as a groundbreaking treaty. It was hailed as a "constitution for the oceans" and as its preamble stated, it was intended to establish a legal order for the seas and oceans which will facilitate international communication, promote the peaceful uses of the oceans, the equitable and efficient utilisation of their resources, the conservation of their living resources, and the study, protection and preservation of the marine environment.

4                      UNCLOS was also notable, in my view for establishing a compulsory dispute settlement system for States to resolve their disputes in a peaceful manner. UNCLOS, which introduced the innovative regimes of transit passage for straits used for international navigation and the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs), has played a crucial role by providing a stable legal framework for navigational rights, while respecting the rights of states to exercise lawful jurisdiction over their territorial waters and exploit the resources in their economic zones.  Today, UNCLOS has gained almost universal acceptance with 155 State Parties and we are hoping that the US will be the 156^th State Party. 

Navigational Freedom, World Trade and Energy Security

5                      The world has seen enormous changes in the 25 years since UNCLOS was adopted.  The Cold War came to an end. The global economy has witnessed a sustained period of growth and prosperity aided by the IT revolution, trade liberalisation and globalisation.  Here in Asia, we have seen unprecedented growth in the last several decades. The rise of China and India has added new momentum to the Asian growth story.

6                      The navigational freedoms and passage rights which are guaranteed by UNCLOS have in my view, underpinned this unprecedented period of global economic growth and prosperity brought about by globalisation and international division of labour.  In order for a company to optimise its production processes by locating different parts of its supply chain in various parts of the world, it goes without saying that it must be able to ship its components rapidly, smoothly and safely between many countries.  The navigational rights are therefore indispensable not only to shipping and maritime nations, but to all nations engaged in international trade and manufacturing.  This is because international shipping is responsible for moving 90% of world trade and annually transports over 7 billion tonnes of cargo over a distance of some 4 million miles. 

7                      Today, navigational freedom is also vital to the energy security of states given that much of the world's energy resources are transported around the globe by sea. For example, two-thirds of the world's liquefied natural gas (LNG) which are traded and half of the world's oil shipments pass through the Straits of Malacca and Singapore.  As the key maritime route linking East Asia to South Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas, the volume of traffic through the Straits of Malacca and Singapore is likely to keep growing as a result of these increasing trade flows and energy demands in Asia and the rest of the world.  As such, it becomes critical that the freedom, safety and security of navigation through these Straits and other regional sea lanes continue to be preserved and protected. 

8                      Linked to energy security concerns is the continuing threat of terrorism.  Post-9/11, the spectre of maritime terrorism has been a major concern.  Nightmare scenarios include the hijacking of an oil or LNG tanker to attack key ports thereby leading to the disruption of global commerce.  The reality of the threat was demonstrated by the attack on a French oil tanker off the coast of Yemen in 2002, in which a small boat rigged with explosives rammed into the tanker. Another instance of maritime terror occurred in February 2004, when terrorists from the Abu Sayyaf Group detonated a bomb planted on board the M/V SuperFerry shortly after it had left Manila Harbour.  The subsequent fire sank the ferry and resulted in the loss of some 116 lives. In the face of these real risks, we must therefore continue to exercise vigilance and strengthen cooperation to prevent and combat such new maritime security threats and concerns.

Climate Change, the Marine Environment, and lessons in cooperation

9                      Another major major global concern relates to reports about the melting of the Polar ice-caps and extreme weather phenomena such as floods, heat waves and tropical storms in different parts of the world. Although the scientific community may be divided in its opinion on the exact causes of climate change, such erratic and unprecedented changes in weather patterns and conditions suggests that global warming has the potential to become one of the world’s most serious threats to humanity. Scientists tell us that rising sea levels could wipe out entire countries off the map.  The melting of the ice caps also may open up new routes for commercial navigation but there are already indications that this is starting to lead to a race among states for the previously inaccessible natural and mineral resources in the Arctic and Antarctic, which is reminiscent of the scramble for resources in the deep seabed beyond national limits, which as you all recalled led to the convening of UNCLOS. 

10                    Those of us involved in the early negotiations of UNCLOS would recall that concerns about the environment were already very much on our minds, even at that time.  As such, UNCLOS is the only international legal framework in place that has provisions for the protection of the marine environment alongside provisions for the sovereign rights of States to exploit their marine resources and the rights of States to use the high seas for trade and transportation.  For example, as stated in Article 193, "States have the sovereign right to exploit their natural resources pursuant to their environmental policies and in accordance with their duty to protect and preserve the marine environment".  Indeed, the range of environmental issues covered in UNCLOS has led some to declare that UNCLOS "probably contains the most comprehensive and progressive international environmental law of any modern international agreement". 

11                    But in so doing, the Convention struck a careful balance between the navigational rights of vessels in the different parts of maritime space and the rights of coastal states to regulate and preserve the environment.  For example, States bordering a strait used for international navigation may only adopt certain categories of laws and regulations relating to transit passage through such straits as specifically laid down in Article 42. 

12                    A similar need to strike an appropriate balance between environmental and economic interests is also present in the forthcoming Climate Change negotiations, in relation to efforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.  It has been pointed out that bunker fuels used by ships contribute significantly to global GHG emissions.  As a result, many port cities in the world have recently enacted laws which require ships to use less pollutive fuels when they approach the ports. Bearing in mind that ships carry more than 90% of the world's merchandise, a balance should be found in GHG emission reduction by ships, the need to maintain freedom of navigation and growth of world trade and economic development.

13                    A holistic approach is also necessary in addressing the problems of marine pollution.  According to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), about 80% of the pollution load in the oceans originates from land-based sources and activities such as municipal, industrial and agricultural wastes and run-off as well as atmospheric deposition.  Estimates show that almost 50% of the world's coasts are threatened by development-related activities.  With one billion of the world's population living in coastal urban areas, the potential socio-economic disruption could reach catastrophic levels if the intense pressures being placed on coastal systems are not alleviated.  It is therefore not sufficient to look only at ship-based sources of pollution, but also important to address land-based sources of pollution as well.

14                    Let me now share with you how the three littoral States of the Straits of Malacca and Singapore have cooperated in accordance with the spirit of UNCLOS.  Since the 1970s, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore have been cooperating on improving navigational safety and control of oil spills in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore through what is known as the Tripartite Technical Experts Group and the Tripartite Revolving Fund Mechanism respectively.  More recently, the three littoral states have worked closely with all the users of the Straits to establish the Cooperative Mechanism for navigational safety and environmental protection in accordance with Article 43 of UNCLOS.  This was done through a series of IMO Meetings on the Straits, under IMO Secretary-General Mr Mitropoulos’ "Protection of Vital Shipping Lanes" initiative.  That led to the formal launch of the Cooperative Mechanism at the Singapore-IMO Meeting last year.

15                    The Cooperative Mechanism is a landmark development in charting a new framework of international cooperation in the Straits.  It provides a transparent and inclusive platform for dialogue and cooperation among the three littoral States and all interested stakeholders on the safety of navigation and environmental protection in the Straits.  For example, through the Cooperation Forum, littoral States can articulate their needs and interests, while the user States and other stakeholders can consider areas where they can, on a voluntary basis, give support, provide capacity building and functional cooperation.  I am happy to note that the Cooperative Mechanism has got off to an excellent start with strong support from the international maritime community.  Australia, China, Greece, Japan, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, the Nippon Foundation and INTERTANKO have all pledged to make concrete contributions.  We look forward to other major maritime stakeholders, such as countries in Europe and the Middle East, joining in this important undertaking.

Balancing Economic Development and Protection of Marine Environment - The Singapore experience

16                    Singapore's own experience shows that it is possible to maintain our marine biodiversity while at the same time becoming the world's busiest transshipment port. Let me briefly elaborate. Singapore’s waters harbour some 250 species of hard corals, or about 32% of the world's 800 species.  Of the 106 coral genera existing worldwide, 55 genera have been documented in Singapore waters.  There are likely to be more coral species and genera per hectare of reef in Singapore waters than there are in the Great Barrier Reef.  In July last year, we initiated a Coral Nursery programme.  Its objective is to enhance our coral reefs using fragments of corals that have been naturally broken off from their parent colonies.  We have achieved this by strictly controlling both land and sea-based sources of marine pollution.

17                    One of our key instruments for protecting our marine environment is the rigorous system of Environmental Monitoring and Management Plans (EMMP) for marine developmental works.  The EMMP essentially allows these activities to be carried out in close proximity to sensitive marine habitats while ensuring adherence to a stringent set of environmental quality objectives.  These techniques have also been successfully adopted for the environmental management of other dredging and reclamation projects in the region, including projects in Bintulu and Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia and Bali Turtle Island in Indonesia. 

18                    Singapore’s experience, and indeed, the experience of our region, and other success stories like Xiamen’s successful Integrated Coastal Management project, all show that protecting the marine environment, maintaining navigational freedoms as well as pursuing economic development are not mutually exclusive.  Each of these activities need not be pursued at the expense of the other as long as a careful balance is struck as has been done in the comprehensive framework which UNCLOS represents.  I hope that over the next two days of this conference more ideas can be exchanged and concrete proposals identified on how we can maintain and promote this important balance.

Conclusion

19                    To conclude, let me say that UNCLOS has served the international community well over these years and I am sure that it will continue to do so in future.  Those of us who spent many years of our lives negotiating UNCLOS and working in different interest groups understand that UNCLOS could only be concluded as a comprehensive package that balanced the competing interests of so many diverse states.  Today, these competing interests or challenges include trade liberalisation, promoting international shipping flows, protecting vital maritime installations and securing safety of passage as well as protecting the marine environment. All these competing interests are not necessarily at odds, nor should they be viewed as a zero sum game as demonstrated by the examples that I have just mentioned.

20                    Clearly those earlier negotiations involved many delicate compromises of competing interests.  We will need to maintain that careful balance.  Together with a new generation of scholars and practitioners who are present here this morning, I believe that we can continue to protect UNCLOS’ integrity in ensuring that States are faithful in their interpretation and application of the Convention. That in my view will help preserve UNCLOS' position as the key instrument for international cooperation in safety, security and environmental protection of the international oceans and seas.