Most South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) countries rely on maritime transport for their international trade. Stronger maritime links are crucial for the subregion to achieve its economic growth potential. For example, improved ports and port access will create better connectivity with Southeast Asia, one of the world's fastest growing economic regions. However, enhanced cooperation among the seven SASEC countries is essential to strengthen maritime links. This report provides an overview of the SASEC maritime sector, identifies the key challenges, and identifies priority collaboration initiatives to overcome them.

Seventy percent of our planet is covered by water, and even in today's world of instant communication the global community is still heavily reliant on sea-based transport. The maritime domain has always been one of NATO's key strengths, but concerns about maritime security have taken on renewed importance in recent years, and NATO has been forced to re-examine some of its fundamental assumptions about the post Cold War security environment.This book shares some of the research, debates and findings from a NATO Advanced Research Workshop (ARW); Building Trust to Enhance Maritime Security, held in Geneva, Switzerland, in November 2014. The chapters in the book deal extensively with lessons learned by NATO from a wide range of policies, operations and situations. This maritime experience has been amassed from the Atlantic and Mediterranean to the Baltic and the Black Sea, and even into the Indian Ocean, as well as from the four decades spent defending NATO allies on the high seas during the Cold War. The single most profound lesson learned over the years has concerned the importance of efficient coordination. Structures and mechanisms have been created, not least in recent counter piracy operations, which enable a vast array of actors to work together in an efficient way, and which could prove invaluable in future efforts to counter terrorism and aggression worldwide.The safety of the maritime domain is essential to the freedom and security of all nations, and this book will be of interest to all those whose work involves maintaining that freedom and security.

This report highlights the results of Asian Development Bank (ADB) operations to support regional cooperation and integration (RCI) completed during 2017–2020. It outlines how ADB managed its support for RCI and used its resources, and how the bank continued leading development partners in assisting major RCI subregional programs. It notes that, in the medium term, sustaining ADB’s RCI leadership and promoting wider, deeper, and more open RCI to support the region’s recovery will require further resources. These include a broader base of quality RCI skills and financial resources mobilized from within and outside ADB. The report follows the 2017 ADB corporate progress report on RCI and is the first such report under ADB's Strategy 2030.

This study seeks to help fill knowledge gaps on maritime trade in the Pacific. It examines trade flows in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Timor-Leste, Tonga, and Vanuatu. The study looks at shared constraints, such as the effects of climate change and exposure to external shocks, and identifies synergistic and regional approaches to address them. It aims to inform long-term planning for trade facilitation across the region by identifying key questions for governments and development partners to consider. It also addresses core questions including how trade flows in the region are changing, how growth will impact seaport operations and shipping services, and how trade efficiency can be improved.

This publication identifies regional and subregional opportunities for Myanmar to harness natural and human resources, industrial potential, and infrastructure connectivity. It updates the Vision document of the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) program since Myanmar joined as the seventh official member in February 2017. Geographically sharing borders with the giant economies of India and the People's Republic of China, Myanmar serves as a land bridge between southern, southeastern, and eastern Asia. Myanmar's rich natural endowments, including oil and natural gas, and large and young labor force are also strategic advantages for regional cooperation and inclusive and sustainable growth.

This book looks at the emerging power dynamics in the Indo-Pacific region and locates India and its interests within the overarching geostrategic framework. With US and China emerging as leading players within the region, the book analyses the challenges to India’s foreign policy in the face of new alliances, counter-alliances, and great power equations that have formed after the Cold War. It discusses important issues such as China’s strategic forays in the Indian Ocean, the balance of power between countries, India’s Act East opportunities, Russia’s re-engagement in the region, the South China Sea dispute, India’s maritime strategy, and the conundrum of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue facing India. A comprehensive study of the changing geopolitical and geostrategic environment of the Indo-Pacific region, the book will be an essential read for scholars and researchers of international relations, global politics, foreign policy, maritime studies, Chinese studies, South Asian studies, geopolitics, and strategic studies.

This book analyses how closer regional connectivity and economic integration between South Asia and Southeast Asia can benefit both regions. With a focus on the role played by infrastructure and public policies in facilitating this process, it provides a detailed and up-to-date discussion of issues, innovations, and progress. Country studies of national connectivity issues and policies cover Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, examining major developments in trade and investment, economic cooperation, the role of economic corridors, and regional cooperation initiatives. Thematic chapters explore investment in land and sea transport infrastructure, trade facilitation, infrastructure investment financing, supporting national and regional policies, and model-based estimates of the benefits of integration. They also identify significant opportunities for strengthening these integration efforts as a result of the recent opening up of Myanmar in political, economic, and financial terms. For the first time for these regions, the book employs a state-of-the-art computable general equilibrium (CGE) model incorporating heterogeneous firms to estimate the advantages of integration. Providing perspective on the latest thinking on integration policy, Connecting Asiais an essential resource for academics, policymakers, and business people alike. Contributors: A. Bayley, T. Chalermpalanupap, K. Cheewatrakoolpong, S. Chirathivat, M.I. Chowdhury, M.I. Corpuz, P. De, H. Florento, J.-F. Gautrin, F. Hutchinson, B. Karmacharya, R. Mishra, K.G. Moazzem, P.J. Morgan, N. Perera, M.G. Plummer, M. Rahman, P.B. Rana, S. Ray, F. Sehrin, T.M.M. Than, M. Thuzar, D. Weerakoon, D. Wignall, M. Wignall, G. Wignaraja, F. Zhai