IOR-ARC and IOC agree to reciprocal
observer status
18 January 2013 16:56
TEHRAN - In
a press release issued on Thursday, the Indian Ocean
Rim-Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) announced that
the association and the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) had agreed to
reciprocal observer status.
The IOR-ARC, which is the only
pan-Indian ocean grouping, has 20 members, namely Australia,
Bangladesh, Comoros, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Malaysia,
Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore,
South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, the United Arab
Emirates, and Yemen.
There are six dialogue partners,
namely China, Egypt, France, Japan, and Britain, and the United
States, and two observers, namely, the Indian Ocean Research Group
and the Indian Ocean Tourism Organization.
The IOC is an intergovernmental
organization that joins Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, France (for
Réunion and Mayotte), and the Seychelles together to encourage
cooperation. The main objectives of the IOC are to promote
diplomatic cooperation and to strengthen economic and commercial
ties among the Indian Ocean islands.
Following is the text of the
IOR-ARC press release:
The President of the Indian Ocean
Commission (IOC) Council of Ministers and Ministers of Foreign
Affairs of the Seychelles, H.E. Mr. Jean Paul Adam, had invited the
Chair of the IOR-ARC Council of Ministers and Minister of External
Affairs of India, H.E. Mr. Salman Khurshid, the Vice Chair of the
IOR-ARC Council of Ministers and Parliamentary Secretary to the
Australian Foreign Minister, H.E. Mr. Richard Marles and the
Secretary General of the IOR-ARC, H.E. Ambassador K. V. Bhagirath,
to attend the 28th Session of the Indian Ocean Commission Council
of Ministers meeting which was held in the Seychelles on the 17th
January 2013. This participation by Senior IOR-ARC Officials gave
H.E. Minister Adam the opportunity to announce the agreed
reciprocal Observer Status between the two esteemed organizations.
The decision to pursue reciprocal
Observer Status between the two organizations was taken at the 12th
Meeting of the IOR-ARC Council of Ministers, in Gurgaon, India, in
November 2012.
The IOR-ARC and IOC are sister
organizations that are both working towards the development of the
region and for the upliftment of its respective communities.
This collaboration between IOR-ARC and IOC may therefore
assist to develop policies and programs among the Member States in
focus areas such as sustainable development, the enhancement of
economic and trade relations, social, cultural and tourism
promotion which would be mutually beneficial to the Member States
of both Organizations. Furthermore, the objective of having an
Observer Status between the two organizations would result in much
closer collaboration in the promotion of the Region's interests
with specific reference to the development and protection of small
islands developing states, as well as LDC's.
http://www.tehrantimes.com/politics/104936-ior-arc-and-ioc-agree-to-reciprocal-observer-status