INTRODUCTION
It's a great pleasure to be back at the Shangri-La Dialogue this year.
I have been coming here for several years but last year, after spending time with British troops in Afghanistan, coming to Shangri-La was my first overseas visit as Britain's Secretary of State for Defence.
My intent then was to send a message about how the new Government in Britain would adopt a different, more engaged approach to the region - diplomatically, militarily, and economically.
I did so because this United Kingdom Government recognises that the world is now multi-polar and multi-powered, and that our interests are not confined to the Euro-Atlantic area.
Too many in Europe still remain focussed on the structures and dynamics of the second half of the 20th century, failing to recognise and adapt to the global shift that has occurred in politics as well as economics.
It is ironic how so many in debt ridden Europe still talk about so called “emerging countries” in Asia while these emerging powers, with their high growth, disappear over the economic horizon.
In Britain, we welcome the developing strategic depth of countries here in Asia and your increasing role in maintaining the international stability and security that, as an open, trading nation, the United Kingdom's national interest requires.
We strongly believe that those who benefit from increased trade and prosperity in an interdependent global economy have a moral responsibility and obligation to contribute to global security - and it is, after all, in their national self-interest to do so.
Here again is an area where many countries in this part of the world show a very good example that others should follow.
Over the last twelve months, Prime Minister David Cameron and senior Ministers have been regular visitors to this part of the world.
From the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence, my colleagues and I have held high-level talks in Japan, India, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Brunei and Singapore, and we have many more planned over the next 12 months.
Our Military Service Chiefs have also engaged widely with their counterparts.
This all reflects our determination to build new relationships and enhance established partnerships.
THE FUTURE OF HISTORY
Britain has long historical connections here in Asia and many close and strong friendships.
But our engagement cannot just be based on shared history but must be based on a shared future.
Economic prosperity is the well-spring of strategic strength.
Power and influence have always followed economic trends.
And so Asia is one of the key centres of global power in the 21st Century.
Over a quarter of the world's richest 100 cities are in this region - in the top 30, there are twice as many here as there are in Europe.
London is one of the worlds financial powerhouses but so too are Tokyo, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Shanghai, Seoul, Sydney, and of course Singapore.
The nature of our world means Britain's national interests are directly affected by events in this region and intimately linked to those of our friends and our partners here.
How the balance of power in this region develops - in close co-operation and in healthy competition - and how countries of this region choose to exercise their responsibility - matters not only to us but across the globe.
The challenges are not just economic and political.
Of course, there are significant security challenges also.
In this connected globalised world many of the threats we face are not confined to one country, nor even to one region, they spread across borders and they extend across oceans.
That is why the United Kingdom's recent Strategic Defence and Security Review was designed to maintain Britain's strategic reach.
This is bolstered by our permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council, NATO, the EU, the Commonwealth, the Five Powers Defence Arrangements and our strong bi-lateral partnerships.
All of this, let me remind you, is underpinned by the 4th largest defence budget in the world.
ACTING TOGETHER
Our Defence Review was grounded in the understanding that for any country isolation, protectionism or unilateralism will not be a recipe for success.
To meet the challenges of this new world West and East, North and South must work together.
We can already see encouraging examples of this being put into practice today.
In Afghanistan, a wide international coalition of 48 countries is assisting the Afghan Government to resist the Taliban-led insurgency, build their indigenous security and deny safe haven to those intent on exporting terrorism.
Of course, that process must include Pakistan, and Pakistan too requires our support as it battles the similar threats on its soil.
Trans-national terrorism does not respect boundaries or borders.
The brand of violent extremism peddled by Al Qaida, its extremist allies and affiliates are not confined to one part of the globe, nor do they target one country, one faith, or one system of Government - as many people in this region know to their very great cost.
We all have a stake in confronting terrorism wherever it surfaces, however difficult that is and however long it takes.
The same is true in countering the scourge of piracy.
As an island nation, maritime security remains of fundamental importance for the United Kingdom, just as it is for many countries here.
As we speak HMS Richmond is steaming through the Malacca Straits to return to counter-piracy duties after conducting successful exercises with our partners in the Five Power Defence Arrangements.
In the Gulf, off the Horn of Africa, here and elsewhere - our navies operate together in international waters.
Forces from Singapore, Japan, China, India, Malaysia, Thailand and South Korea to name just a few work regularly and well alongside the EU, NATO, and other national forces.
A fortnight ago, Britain took part in the successful three day Maritime Information Sharing Exercise in which Singapore acted as the hub for 26 countries and 42 operational centres.
We have also applied to join the Regional Co-operation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against ships in Asia.
This is truly a multi-national response to a multi-national menace.
In this increasingly interconnected world it is not only the physical transfer of goods and services we have to protect.
The effect on the economies of this region of a well-planned and well resourced cyber attack on trans-national commercial networks and institutions would be catastrophic, and would impact on us all.
We face today the war of the invisible enemy.
That is why the United Kingdom is mainstreaming cyber security across all parts of Government at home, and why cyber security is regularly high on the agenda in discussions we have with partners in this region.
Nuclear non-proliferation is another area in which we must continue to co-operate.
We have a direct interest in working together to address the nuclear programmes of North Korea and Iran.
But we also have an interest in strengthening the international rules-based system in order to reduce the risk of future proliferation, help declared nuclear states build trust, de-escalate tensions, and bring down, not build up, nuclear arsenals.
In all these areas isolation or unilateralism is not an option.
The responsible exercise of power requires partnership.
As the influence of Asia grows, so too does the requirement for more nations to take responsibility for building the regional and international stability and security that is needed if our citizens are to remain prosperous and protected.
MULTI-LAYERED SECURITY
The last 12 months has seen significant developments in regional security here with the continuing evolution of ASEAN and the establishment of the ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting Plus.
I have no doubt that this trend - of increasingly effective institutions - will continue over time.
We should act through multi-lateral organisations wherever possible.
But equally we must ensure that a lack of consensus does not lead to a lack of action and that we are able to deal with threats appropriately and in a timely manner.
That is why we need multilayered security so that we can respond using the right means for the right occasion - through multi-lateral organisations yes but also through smaller coalitions or bi-lateral relationships.
The United Kingdom / United States relationship and Britain's membership of NATO and have been, remain, and will remain the bedrock of our collective security.
The European Union is also a key part of the means through which we promote security and prosperity in our own neighbourhood.
But we also seek to build on established partnerships in Asia and to forge new non-traditional partnerships.
For instance, this November will mark the 40th anniversary of the Five Power Defence Arrangements.
The formal stocktake of FPDA's structures, exercises, and activities will demonstrate its continued relevance and ensure that the arrangements evolve in the light of contemporary security challenges.
The United Kingdom and Australia are also developing a bi-lateral Defence Treaty that we aim to conclude early in 2012.
But the last 12 months has also seen us improve bilateral security co-operation with a wide range of countries across the region, through joint training, collaboration on defence capabilities and equipment, research and development, sharing information and defence education.
This is what we might describe as a “building block” approach to defence and security and it is part of the United Kingdom's new strategy of enhanced engagement in Asia.
CONCLUSION
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Here in Asia, just as in Europe, we are seeing the fruits of globalisation.
But globalisation also brings the unavoidable importation of strategic risk.
As I have said earlier, those who benefit from globalisation must contribute to managing the strategic risk.
Recent natural disasters in this region have had a global impact, reminding us all how vulnerable we are to the forces of nature as well as the forces of mankind.
We live in an unpredictable and volatile age in which there is no single centre of power in the world.
The future will be shaped in a great measure by how security, stability and prosperity in Asia are managed.
Not just in pursuit of narrow national interests but in recognition that we all are connected and dependent on each other connected in trade and prosperity, and dependent in security.
There is no better way to secure the future than to help shape it.
That is what Britain stands ready to do in partnership with many of you here today.