Virtual meet promotes synergy among defense, military under ASEAN

From them Philippine Information Agency (Dec 14, 2020): Virtual meet promotes synergy among defense, military under ASEAN (By Nonette P. Castillo)

PASIG CITY, Dec. 14 (PIA) -- The virtual 14th ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM), 7th ADMM-Plus, and related meetings hosted last week by Viet Nam as the 2020 ASEAN Chair, promoted synergy and cooperation among ASEAN Member States, a statement sent to the PIA-NCR said.

Defense Undersecretary Cardozo M. Luna represented the Secretary of National Defense in the virtual meetings in keeping with COVID-19 health and safety protocols, this year's ADMM and ADMM-Plus were held virtually since their establishment in 2006 and 2010, respectively.

Luna congratulated Viet Nam for its successful chairmanship and reaffirmed the Philippines’ continuing support for the ADMM as the highest mechanism for defense dialogue and practical cooperation under the auspices of ASEAN.

He also maintained that the ADMM-Plus should remain as the main platform for regional defense engagement towards achieving an open and inclusive regional security architecture with ASEAN at the center.

The 14th ADMM adopted various documents such as the Concept Paper on Developing the Linkage between the ADMM and ASEAN Chiefs of Defence Forces Meeting (ACDFM), co-sponsored by the Philippines and Malaysia, which will promote synergy among defense and military meetings under ASEAN, enable the ACDFM to take stock of all ASEAN military meetings, and inform the ADMM of such initiatives; and the Concept Paper on Enhancing Defence Attaché Posts Among ASEAN Member States, co-sponsored by the Philippines with Thailand, which will promote the role of defense attachés on multilateral defense cooperation under ASEAN.

The defense official said despite the challenges caused by the pandemic, the ADMM-Plus should not lose track of other security issues, particularly the situation in the South China Sea and Korean Peninsula, cyber security, terrorism, and disasters. He also echoed the Chairman’s Statement of the 37th ASEAN Summit in calling for non-militarization and self-restraint in the South China Sea.

Highlights of the meetings included the signing of 14th ADMM’s Joint Declaration as well as the Joint Declaration on Strategic Security Vision of the ADMM-Plus. This marked the first time that a Joint Declaration was signed by the ADMM-Plus since 2013.

Luna also took part in the ADMM’s informal meetings with the defense ministers of the US, China, and Japan, wherein he emphasized the importance of ASEAN centrality, particularly the ASEAN Outlook in the Indo-Pacific.

He also attended the virtual commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the ADMM-Plus and the engagement with the Guests of the Chair, which was the first time that such an activity was held with ASEAN’s friends and Dialogue Partners beyond the members of the ADMM-Plus.

He, likewise, expressed support for Brunei Darussalam’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2021. (PIA NCR)

https://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1061660