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Seychelles backs open Indo-Pacific, aligns with India’s Mahasagar Vision
Seychelles wants the Indo-Pacific to remain open, inclusive and governed by international law, with cooperation instead of confrontation, President Dr Patrick Herminie said in an interview. He said this approach aligns with India's Mahasagar Vision and supports a stronger defence partnership with India.
Seychelles envisions the Indo-Pacific as a region that is open, inclusive and governed by international law, with cooperation rather than confrontation, the country's president, Dr Patrick Herminie, told ET's Dipanjan Roy Chaudhury in an interview. This is aligned with India's “Mahasagar Vision”, he said, backing a robust defence partnership with India. Edited excerpts:
Q: What are your priorities for deepening India-Seychelles strategic ties? And how do they converge with PM Modi's Mahasagar Vision for the Indo- Pacific region?
A: Our focus is on strengthening cooperation that deliver tangible benefits to the people of Seychelles while enhancing our role as responsible partners in the Indian Ocean region.
First, we want to expand cooperation in socio-economic development, particularly in health, education and cost of living improvements. India's expertise and capacity in these fields can help accelerate progress on issues that matter directly to our citizens, complementing Seychelles national development plans.
Second, defence and maritime security remain central. Seychelles and India share not just friendship but also an ocean, and continued collaboration in training, surveillance and joint operations will strengthen stability across our vast oceans. Third, we seek deeper economic and trade partnerships, including expanded trade, technology exchanges and capacity building opportunities. While Seychelles is a small island developing state, partnership with India can help us in agriculture, renewable energy and skills development without dependency but through mutual respect and win-win cooperation. Our priorities align closely with Prime Minister Modi's Mahasgar Vision.
As a small island state, our foremost priority is stability, sustainability and openness of the Indian Ocean as a shared space that supports development for all. In that sense, many of the principles articulated in India's Mahasagar Vision, particularly respect for sovereignty, maritime safety, sustainable use of ocean resources, and capacity-building for developing states. These are fully consistent with our national interests.
We view the Indian Ocean not as an arena for competition but as a zone of cooperation. Any initiative that strengthens regional resilience, supports climate adaptation, improves maritime connectivity and enhances disaster preparedness is of value to us. In that context, India's long-standing role as a partner in the Indian Ocean has been important and appreciated.
Q: What are Seychelles' expectations from the Colombo Security Conclave?
A: India remains a key regional partner for Seychelles. Through our partnership, India continues to support Seychelles in strengthening capacity across manpower development and the provision of essential equipment, thereby enhancing the Seychelles Defence Forces' ability to safeguard national sovereignty and protect our maritime interests. Within the framework of the Comprehensive Strategic Cooperation, this collaboration would be further institutionalised. India has consistently demonstrated its readiness to support Seychelles in addressing security or military contingencies that exceed national capacity, contributing to regional stability and reinforcing collective security in the Western Indian Ocean.
Q: India and Seychelles have shared a convergence of views in the Indian Ocean region. What's your vision for the region, and does it align with India's approach?
A: Seychelles envisions the Indo-Pacific as a region that must remain open, inclusive and governed by international law, with cooperation rather than confrontation as its central organising principle. As a small island developing state located at the crossroads of vital sea lines of communication, our security and prosperity are inseparable from stability in the Indo Pacific region.
India and Seychelles share a strong convergence of views on these fundamentals. Our long-standing defence partnership dating back to the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1976 has steadily expanded through practical cooperation in maritime security, capacity building, training and domain awareness.
Seychelles maintains a policy of non-alignment and believes firmly that the Indo-Pacific should remain a zone of peace. We concur with India that regional countries must work together, respect sovereignty, and uphold freedom of navigation and overflight in accordance with international law, particularly United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Our vision is not one of competing blocs, but of cooperative security architectures that address both traditional threats such as piracy and illicit trafficking and non-traditional ones, including climate change, illegal fishing, maritime pollution, and humanitarian disasters.
In this sense, our vision for the Indo-Pacific aligns closely with India's approach: a stable, rules-based maritime order, enhanced regional connectivity and resilience, and partnerships that are transparent, mutually beneficial and focused on the collective good of the wider Indo-Pacific community.
Q: Which are the sectors in trade and investment where you see India and Seychelles collaborating?
A: Seychelles sees very strong potential for collaboration with India across a number of strategic and mutually beneficial sectors. Building on our already growing trade relationship, we are keen to deepen cooperation in digital technologies and e-governance, where India's leadership in digital public infrastructure can support Seychelles' own digital transformation agenda. We also see significant opportunities in renewable energy, particularly solar power, as Seychelles accelerates its transition to clean and climate-resilient energy systems. Beyond this, we welcome greater Indian participation in infrastructure development, telecommunications, social housing and real estate, as well as continued investment in tourism and hospitality, which remains a cornerstone of our economy. At the same time, Seychelles is actively seeking partnerships in pharmaceuticals, food supply, agriculture, fisheries value-addition, manufacturing support and logistics to reduce import dependency and strengthen domestic and regional supply chains. Emerging areas such as aquaculture, green mobility, waste circularity, and skills development also offer strong long-term opportunities. Our message is simple: Seychelles offers Indian businesses a stable, open, and strategically located platform for sustainable investment in the Indian Ocean region.
Q: What are Seychelles' views on Global South priorities like debt relief and climate finance?
A: Seychelles firmly believes that the priorities of the Global South must be addressed with urgency and fairness, particularly in relation to debt relief and climate finance. Many developing and small island states are carrying debt burdens that were exacerbated by global shocks not of their making—whether from pandemics, climate events or external economic conditions. We support international efforts to reform the global debt architecture so that it becomes more responsive, timely and equitable, including greater access to concessional financing and mechanisms that recognise climate vulnerability, not just income levels.
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Source: EconomicTimes
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