Enhancing Tonga's maritime security

This paper asserts that the large size of Tonga's exclusive economic zone poses challenging problems for the government in managing the area's maritime resources and providing effective security of the region. It also notes that Tonga's geographic isolation, sparse population and weak economy make it vulnerable to the potential impact of transnational criminal activities, while illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing poses a significant threat to food security.

The paper contends that Tonga's national crisis response policy is immature, requiring further development in order to best harness its limited response capabilities. It also asserts that Tonga's maritime border security and search-and-rescue capabilities are being hampered by a lack of cooperation and coordination between the relevant agencies. The paper argues that Tonga requires a coordinated, whole-of-government policy and strategy to make the best use of the country's limited capabilities to protect Tonga's maritime security interests. The paper proposes the establishment of a maritime coordinating body as the most appropriate means to implement this intent, which it argues Tonga should establish as a matter of priority.

This paper was also published in the Indo-Pacific Strategic Digest series.

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