IISS SHANGRI-LA DIALOGUE, SINGAPORE - 2016

[Zebra]

A dedicated thread about Shangri-La Dialogue 2016.

 

[Zebra]

http://www.straitstimes.com/world/u...etary-ashton-carter-speech-at-iiss-shangri-la

Transcript of US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter's speech at IISS Shangri-La Dialogue on Saturday

United States Defence Secretary Ashton Carter on Saturday (June 4) urged China to join a “principled security network” for Asia, saying that the United States would remain the world’s most powerful military and the main guarantor of regional security for decades to come. Carter, who spoke at Singapore’s annual International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-La Dialogue, also warned that China risks further alienating regional neighbours and building a “Great Wall of self-isolation” as it pursues its military expansion across the South China Sea.

Below is the full transcript of Carter’s speech at the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue.

SECRETARY OF DEFENCE ASH CARTER
“THE ASIA-PACIFIC’S PRINCIPLED SECURITY NETWORK”
IISS SHANGRI-LA DIALOGUE, SINGAPORE
SATURDAY, JUNE 4, 2016

Thank you, John. Good morning, everyone.

I want to thank John for inviting me to speak again this year, and IISS for again bringing us together in this forum. For 15 years now – and I attended the first Dialogue in 2002 – IISS has been fostering the discussions and debates that have shaped the dynamic Asia-Pacific’s security, stability, and prosperity in this still young century. Thank you for doing so.



Thanks as well for the dinner last evening, which featured a thoughtful keynote by Thailand Prime Minister Prayut.

And I’d also like to thank our national host Singapore for welcoming us again this year. Prime Minister Lee, thank you. President Obama looks forward to hosting you in Washington in August. This nation – and its incredible rise – is the quintessential example of the remarkable progress in this region over the past 70 years.

Miracle after miracle has occurred here…Japan, then Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore and Southeast Asia rose and prospered, and now, China and India are rising and prospering.

And continued progress is being made daily – by young innovators in Hanoi, and at technology companies in Mumbai; by the transition in Burma, and by avid consumers in China; at the universities in Seoul, and in the bustling Strait of Malacca I flew over yesterday.

There are many who share the credit for this success. This region’s proud, industrious citizens. The statesmen in this region’s past, including the late Lee Kuan Yew, whom we continue to honor, and the many statesmen among us today. The policymakers, business leaders, military officials, scholars, and non-governmental leaders who’ve worked to make this region stable and prosperous. And, in addition to all these individuals, it is also to the credit of shared principles – principles that have long been accepted and collectively upheld.

All that progress has led to historic change in the Asia-Pacific. Most of the change has been positive: country after country is seeking to play a greater role in regional affairs, and that’s for the good. But not all the change in the region has been as constructive. Indeed, tensions in the South China Sea, North Korea’s continued nuclear and missile provocations, and the dangers of violent extremism felt worldwide, pose challenges to the region’s stability and prosperity.

And so as the region continues to change, forward-thinking statesmen and leaders must once again come together to ensure a positive, principled future…one where everyone, and every nation, continues to have the opportunity and freedom to rise, prosper, and win....................

 

[Zebra]

....................................................................................................