Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration (MFAI) director of International and Trade Division, Mackenzi Wichman, participated in the inaugural Maritime Cooperation and Connectivity Conference, an implementation project of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific in Jakarta, Indonesia.

“Maritime security and opportunities for cooperation with partner governments within and beyond our Pacific region are integral to ensuring the ongoing security of the Cook Islands,” said Wichman.

“Southeast Asia connects the Indian and Pacific Oceans, and its waters are some of the most important maritime spaces in the world in terms of global trade, food and energy security, and marine biodiversity, with 60% of global maritime trade passing through Asia.

“Maritime domain awareness of activities within our EEZ and beyond our EEZ can only be enhanced through exchanges in fora such as this Conference which also serve to strengthen our working relationships with counterparts while at the same time working collaboratively with others to uphold the international rules-based order.”

Cook Islands waters are patrolled by its Guardian Class Patrol vessel, Te Kukupa II, managed by the Cook Islands Maritime Police Service working closely with the Ministry of Marine Resources who manage the Cook Islands Oceans Monitoring Centre.

On request, surveillance by Te Kukupa II is supplemented by vessels of the French, New Zealand, and United States navy’s operating under bilateral arrangements with the Cook Islands.

Co-hosted by the Governments of Indonesia and Japan, the conference sought to strengthen existing maritime cooperation and facilitate discussion on the region’s distinctive maritime security challenges, including transnational maritime threats, climate change, and heightened tension at sea, and challenges in law enforcement.

The forum was aimed at enhancing practical maritime cooperation through sharing of perspectives and experiences with participants representing governments of ASEAN, Asia, North America, Europe and the United Kingdom, and Pacific regions.

Ensuring the Cook Islands’ maritime security is a multi-agency effort made possible with support from key bilateral partners such as New Zealand, Australia, France, and through regional maritime surveillance exercises overseen by the Forum Fisheries Agency.

The Cook Islands patrols its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) 1.9 million square kilometres of sea as well as pockets of the high seas to the north of the Cook Islands, near Penrhyn.

• MFAI