ABSTRACT
The role of BIMSTEC, from the lens of maritime security and connectivity, is important not only for the Bay of Bengal but also for connectivity between the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceanic regions, through which several International Shipping Lanes (ISLs) and Sea Lanes of Communication (SLOCs) crisscross. This needs to be viewed within the broad framework of the emerging maritime space of the ‘Indo-Pacific’ region. Within the Indo-Pacific are also positioned other regional organisations like the Association for South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA). BIMSTEC along with IORA and ASEAN cover a large and vital maritime space of the Indo-Pacific region, and in addition to common members, also share commonalities of challenges and risks especially in the maritime domain. However, these three organisations have largely been working in silos even when it is known that inter-organisational cooperative mechanisms can synergise output. Given this background, this chapter makes a case, using a theoretical framework of ‘domain similarity,’ for BIMSTEC to forge links with ASEAN and IORA in order to enhance maritime security cooperation within the Indo-Pacific.
