New Delhi, Feb. 17 -- Countries across the Indian Ocean should coordinate policies and work jointly to ensure security and stability, especially amid a churn in geopolitics from West Asia to the Indo-Pacific, external affairs minister S Jaishankar said on Sunday.

India has a crucial role in these processes, including stabilising economies facing stress, acting as a first responder in emergencies and helping forge connectivity across the region, Jaishankar said in his keynote address at the Indian Ocean Conference in Muscat.

The conference, which has the backing of the foreign ministries of India and Oman, has been organised as geopolitical realignments are taking place due to the policies of the Donald Trump administration in the US and...