Sri Lanka (Commonwealth Union)_ The 6th National Security Adviser (NSA)-level meeting of the Colombo Security Conclave (CSC) took place in Mauritius, featuring the participation of NSAs from India, Mauritius, and Sri Lanka, along with delegates from the Seychelles and Bangladesh. The session, emphasizing regional security and stability, saw NSA Ajit Doval underscoring the pivotal role of the CSC in this context. He highlighted the ongoing importance of engagements across various cooperation pillars, and a Roadmap of Activities for 2024 was collectively agreed upon by the participating nations, as reported by India’s High Commission to Mauritius.
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According to the statement from the Indian High Commission in Mauritius, “NSA Doval emphasised the crucial role of the CSC in ensuring regional security and stability and highlighted the significance of continued engagements under the different pillars of cooperation.” Ajit Doval’s visit to Mauritius for the 6th NSA-level meeting of the Colombo Security Conclave commenced on Wednesday. The CSC, originally comprising India, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives, has expanded its membership to include Mauritius following the 5th meeting hosted by the Maldives on May 9 last year. During that session, discussions revolved around the close cooperation needed among member and observer countries in areas such as maritime safety, security, countering terrorism, and radicalization.
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Recognizing their collective role as maritime nations and close neighbors, the NSAs acknowledged their role as first responders for the region. NSA Doval, in his statement, advocated for strengthening cooperation among maritime neighbors to effectively address shared security challenges. The Colombo Security Conclave, initially named the Trilateral for Maritime Security Cooperation, had its name and scope expanded at the 4th NSA-level meeting in Colombo on November 28, 2020. Subsequently, a permanent secretariat was established in Colombo, tasked with coordinating all conclave activities and implementing decisions made at the NSA level.
During the 6th meeting, the member states also evaluated the implementation of the decisions made at the previous NSA-level meeting. Accordingly, marine pollution, maritime law, coastal security, oceanography and hydrography, countering the financing of terrorism, investigating terrorism cases, narcotics trafficking, cybercrime, and cyber security were among the topics covered by CSC activities over the past year. The next edition of the NSA-level meeting will be held in India in 2024.
