MENC

Middle East Naval Commanders Conference:

The Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition (DIMDEX) is a landmark event in the global maritime calendar, and is the pre-eminent maritime event in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The importance of the DIMDEX meeting, when coupled with the significance of the MENA region in global defence and security debates, presents the opportunity to bring senior naval commanders, policy-makers and other government officials, industrialists and analysts together to discuss key developments in the maritime area. In particular, the high-profile Middle East Naval Commanders (MENC) conference will enable DIMDEX participants to hear addresses from senior figures and to debate key issues relating to maritime security. Since 2008, the MENC conference has grown into a significant activity not only within DIMDEX but also in its own right within the international maritime defence and security calendar.

DIMDEX 2012 and the MENC conference will take place at what is a unique time in MENA and wider global defence and security matters. First, the Arab Spring has generated a seismic shift in the strategic landscape of the region. Second, as nations begin to extract themselves from counter-insurgency embroilments in Afghanistan and Iraq and with reducing political appetite for enduring commitment ashore, there is an increasing shift in focus towards the use of the sea as a base for supporting national and international policy interests. As a result, there is an increasing desire to invest in maritime capabilities which can support a range of security tasks. Third, despite the current politico-strategic focus on lower-end security tasks, including counter-insurgency operations ashore and maritime security tasks at sea, the enduring issue of state-on-state challenges and the development across the world of high-end naval capabilities generate continuing risk of national interests competing and conflicting.

Perhaps most significantly, the geo-strategic importance of the MENA region and its waters endures. Alongside the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Aden, recent times have demonstrated the increasing importance of both the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea in global security affairs. In particular, the MENA region remains of primary geo-strategic importance because of the need to deliver security at sea to protect the global maritime trade upon which the world relies. Delivering secure and open use of the sea is vital in enabling the free flow of the global maritime trading network. The maritime trade – and, in particular, energy - which flows through the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean, along the sea lines of communication and maritime choke points (the latter including the Straits of Hormuz, the Bab Al Mendeb and Malacca Straits and the Suez Canal) and through key infrastructure nodes such as ports and pipelines plays a crucial role in supporting the global economy. A physical manifestation of globalisation, nations rely on these global maritime arteries.

Throughout history, the sea has remained central to the strength of global trade and of the global economy. Throughout history also, the role of navies in securing the free and open use of the sea to enable the flow of this trade has proved vital. Today, as globalisation increases both the importance of the global trade network and the interdependence of nations as they seek to develop such trade and wider national prosperity, navies and other government maritime organisations play a fundamental role in delivering security at sea on behalf of the international community. Economic analyses continue to indicate significant and enduring growth in maritime trade.

Yet challenges remain in securing the use of the sea in support of national and wider international prosperity. At a time of increasing global financial and resource constraints, competition between states persists. Maritime security challenges are continuing to develop in a range of forms from terrorism to piracy to illegal trafficking. Nearly all of the recent global humanitarian disasters have required the deployment of military forces and other government and wider international organisations based at sea to provide a base for the response. All the time, global use of the sea continues to grow.

Despite challenges faced by many nations in delivering affordable, capable and balanced naval force structures, the role of navies in delivering security at sea to support national and international prosperity remains clear. Within this context, the conference will address other related strategic trends, including:

• The consequences of increasing regional and global multi-polarity, and the emergence of new regional and global naval players while more traditional major navies continue to reduce force levels. To what extent will this generate a more level regional and global playing field, in both capability and operational terms?
• The requirement or otherwise for increased co-operation between governments and inter-operability between navies to deliver security at sea.
• Key capability developments, including the development of coast guard forces, maritime surveillance capabilities, air/surface/sub-surface unmanned systems, and off-board capabilities. Will the requirement for a greater range of new, more flexible capabilities force a trade-off with traditional investment in higher-end warships?
• In the context of enduring state-on-state rivalry, how will navies balance a range of capability requirements – from high-end matters including deterrence, ballistic missile defence and the use of major naval capabilities (as demonstrated by the NATO operation in Libya) to piracy, maritime security, cybersecurity and presence – to deliver security at sea? Moreover, such requirements may need to be met with an evolving mix of ever-smaller numbers of high-end, more expensive naval capabilities (such as destroyers, frigates and submarines) and increasing numbers of low-cost and/or commercial off-the-shelf platforms such as corvettes, offshore patrol vessels and landing and logistics ships. There is a particular focus on platforms which have the flexibility to adapt to a range of tasks.
• What will the continuing shocks in global finance mean for the shape of the naval industry, with more nations competing in shrinking traditional and growing new markets? As more nations want to develop their own naval build, repair and design capabilities, broader economic and more specific naval industrial challenges may see a shift in naval shipbuilding expertise to nations with growing economic strength.

The MENC conference will highlight the significant role of the naval forces in providing maritime security in order to generate and maintain the stability needed for business, economics and overall prosperity. It will provide valuable insights into the thinking of naval commanders, commercial industry and independent analysts into how governments and navies can best prepare today for the future. Through discussion and wider interaction, the conference will enhance understanding of the challenges which must be addressed.