The United States says America will always be a Pacific nation and stay engaged in this part of the world.
And India says it can help enhance the region's maritime security, especially in the Straits of Malacca.
These pledges were made in Singapore on Saturday by their defence ministers at the annual security meeting dubbed the Shangri-La Dialogue.
By S. Ramesh
The United States says America will always be a Pacific nation and stay engaged in this part of the world.
And India says it can help enhance the region's maritime security, especially in the Straits of Malacca.
These pledges were made in Singapore on Saturday by their defence ministers at the annual security meeting dubbed the Shangri-La Dialogue.
US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said that in the present security environment, cooperation among free nations is not just desirable but critical, especially when freedom is increasingly under assault by rogue regimes and Islamic extremists.
He said: "The struggle that is taking place in that religion is relatively between a small minority of violent extremists against an overwhelming majority of the remaining Muslim people. How is this going to end? It is going to end over a long period of time with the majority prevailing and what we need to do is believe in free systems and don't believe that it is desirable for people to go out and kill innocent men, women and children."
On Iraq, Mr Rumsfeld said that the US would stay the course even if things got tough.
He said: "I read every day that the reason the United States is in the Middle East is for oil. It's not why we are there. We do not intend to stay there and take the Iraqi oil. We cannot occupy the country for any period of time.
"Our troops would like to go home, they will go home at a pace when we, with our friends and allies in the coalition, pass on the responsibility to the Iraqi security forces so that they can pull up their socks and take responsibility for the country.
"It is the Iraqi people who will have to suppress the insurgency, not the coalition forces, not foreign forces."
Mr Rumsfeld also commended the littoral states of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore for the efforts that the three states have taken to enhance the safety and security of the sea lines of communication along the Malacca Straits.
And another country which is prepared to cooperate in this area is India.
Indian Defence Minister, Pranab Mukherjee, said: "The dimensions of maritime security loom large on radar screen. Singapore stands at the crossroad of one of the important waterways of the world, the Straits of Malacca.
"In recent years, piracy has been a major challenge in this region and we can only hope that maritime terrorism does not follow closely behind.
"There is a need to increase and strengthen regional cooperation to enhance maritime security.
"India has been working with the countries in the region both bilaterally and multilaterally.
"Subject to the desire of the littoral states, India would be willing to assist in the project in whatever capacity if deems suitable."
More than 50 per cent of India's maritime trade passes through the Straits of Malacca. - CNA/ir
