Report on the Melbourne Dialogue
1st Dialogue on Security & Disarmament in the Asia-Pacific, Melbourne 26-28 August 1998
The dialogue was an initiative of the National Centre for South Asian Studies and the Monash Asia Institute, Australia
Origins of the dialogue
The dialogue was organised in the aftermath of nuclear tests in May 1998 by India and Pakistan. The organisers invited a number of Australian and international experts on South Asia, especially South Asian security, to participate in the dialogue. The participants decided to call themselves the Melbourne Group and agreed to continue to communicate with each other through the offices of the National Centre for South Asian Studies and the Monash Asia Institute at Monash University.
The focus of discussions was on the situation in South Asia but in the regional context of the Asia-Pacific as a whole. It was the belief of the organisers, and the participants also, that the nuclear tests by India and Pakistan needed to be understood in this broader context.
The discussions observed Chatham House rules, and as such
no detailed reports on the contributions by particular individuals
can be given. However, the meeting was conducted in an atmosphere
of goodwill and friendship, so by the end of the proceedings it was
possible for the participants to agree on the wording of a communique
which is attached to the end of this report.
This report
on the dialogue is divided into the following sections:
1. the concept of a dialogue;
2. the background paper;
3. the participants;
4. sponsors;
5. feedback
on the dialogue;
6. the
ongoing nature of the dialogue;
7. a brief report on what was discussed;
8. the Communique of Friday 28 August 1998.
1. The concept of a dialogue
Plans for the dialogue emerged in early June in discussions between the Directors of the National Centre for South Asian Studies and the Monash Asia Institute in Melbourne. In particular, the organisers felt that Australia's response to the nuclear tests by India and Pakistan had been inappropriate. Instead of suspending all official visits and dialogue with India and Pakistan, it was felt that Australia should engage in more dialogue than ever before to have some positive influence on the emerging security scenario in South Asia. The cessation of official dialogue suggested that it was an important to begin a non-official dialogue on a range of security concerns that emerged in the aftermath of the nuclear tests by India and Pakistan. The organisers also believed that it was highly appropiate for Monash University to initiate the non-official dialogue-Australian universities have long played an important historical role in developing Australia's relationships with the countries of the Asia-Pacific.
The conference organisers wanted to create an exchange of opinions and, moreover, direct this exchange towards a consideration of what steps could now be taken to improve the security of the Asia-Pacific environment, rather than dwell on the long history of events that created the situation in which India and Pakistan tested nuclear devices in May 1998.
To achieve this purpose, it was decided that the participants would not be asked to write papers. All too often, papers result in precious time being spent on giving 'position statements'. Moreover, each of the sessions was designed to facilitate an unstructured dialogue between the participants. The chairs of the sessions played an important role in facilitating discussions and ensuring that all voices were heard.
This feature of the dialogue was greatly appreciated by the participants. All the available time was spent on discussion and on at least one occasion, the group decided to diverge from the program in order to provide more time to discuss those matters that emerged as especially significant and therefore required greater attention.
2. The background paper
The dialogue began with the presentation of a background paper called 'Security and Disarmament in the Asia-Pacific: The Issues from a Non-Official Australian Perspective' by Marika Vicziany and John McKay. Given that Australia was the initiator and host of the dialogue, it was important for the organisers to present a paper that outlined some of the concerns that had led them to take this initiative. The paper deals with a number of issues, including the nature of the Australian-American alliance, and Australian and American approaches to South Asia and the Korean Peninsula.
The authors of the background paper also wanted to signal to the participants that:
- the non-official Australian view of how best to promote security in the Asia-Pacific at times agreed with and at other times diverged from the official Australian position,
- a comparative perspective on the current situation in South Asia which would help to elucidate the nature of Australian and American foreign policy - it was hoped that a similar comparative framework would facilitate the dialogue in the other sessions,
- whilst Australia remained under the nuclear umbrella of the USA and the Australia-USA alliance was one of the critical factors in Australian defence and foreign policy,
- Australia had a number of unique contributions to make to that alliance.
3. The participants
A total of 60 persons participated consisting of the following groups:
Eminent
international guests: 9
Government observers: 16
Australian guests: 8
Other South Asian experts:
27
4. The sponsors
The organisation of the dialogue relied heavily on the resources of Monash University. The organisers are also very grateful to a number of outside sponsors who provided valuable support:
- The Australia-India Council, Canberra, Australia
- Mr. John Alsop, the Hon. Consul for Pakistan, Melbourne, Australia
- The Indian Council for Cultural Relations, New Delhi, India
- The Melbourne City Council, Melbourne, Australia
- Monash International, Melbourne, Australia
- Qantas Airlines, Mumbai Office, India
- Dr Jana Rao, the Hon. Consul for India in Melbourne, Australia
- The Windsor Hotel Melbourne, Australia
5. Feedback on the dialogue
The dialogue and the communique issued by the Melbourne Group have been well received in Australia and abroad. In particular, our eminent participants from South Asia have expressed their satisfaction with the proceedings and outcome and have pledged to support our ongoing endeavours to address the issues stated in our communique.
The communique has been widely circulated through the following means;
- The email systems and websites of the National Centre for South Asian Studies, the Monash Asia Institute and the Nautilus Institute in California;
- Direct mail to Australian and overseas media outlets;
- Mailout by the Australia-India Business Council;
- Publication on the Government of India website http://www.indiagov.org
- Emails to various South Asia experts in universities, think tanks, government organisations and multilateral
- organisations in America, Europe and South Asia
- Report on the dialogue and the Communique by the Press Trust of India (Sydney office) was published
- in, for example, the 'Deccan Chronicle' Hyderabad, 3 September 1998.
Initial responses to the dialogue are summarised in Appendix A. We continue to encourage people to write to us with their responses and suggestions and we invite all concerned people to join the dialogue process.
6. The ongoing nature of the dialogue
The Melbourne Group decided that it was important to disseminate the conclusions of our deliberations amongst governments and policy making communities abroad and to do this by setting up dialogue processes in:
- Washington
- Beijing
- Tokyo
- Seoul
- Islamabad
- New Delhi and other world capitals.
To this end a small number of representatives from the Melbourne Group plan to visit Washington in January 1999.
7. A brief report on what was discussed during the dialogue
The dialogue ranged across a wide number of issues including:
- the current security and defence policies of the nations of South Asia, including their governments' attitudes to the CTBT, missile developments in Northeast Asia;
- the relationship between South Asia security and developments in Northeast Asia;
- the relationship between South Asia security and developments in Southeast Asia;
- Australian defence and foreign policies and attitudes towards the US alliance;
- the current status of the Canberra Commission's Report;
- the defence and foreign policies of the USA on the Asia-Pacific region;
- the domestic and foreign/defence policies of the People's Republic of China;
- the impact of the Asian currency crisis on regional security and the role of and perceptions of the IMF;
- the role and processes of APEC
reflected the consensus within the Melbourne Group.
8. The Communique by the Melbourne Group
It is a rare occurrence for an international conference to result in a degree of consensus as was achieved in Melbourne on 28 August 1998. We encourage all readers of this report to assist our efforts at improving security and disarmament in the Asia-Pacific by making the contents of the Communique known to their friends and colleagues. Click here to access the Melbourne Group Communique