
Singapore (VNA) – The ASEAN Defence SeniorOfficials’ Meeting (ADSOM) and ASEAN Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting Plus(ADSOM+) took place in Singapore from July 11 to 13 to enhance defencecooperation in ASEAN as well as between the bloc and partner countries.
The two meetings also aimed to prepare for theASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) and the ASEAN Defence Ministers’Meeting Plus (ADMM+) slated for this October.
At the ADSOM, heads of the delegations discussedreports on the outcomes of defence cooperation among ASEAN nations, themeetings of ASEAN militaries’ research agencies, and the preparations for theADMM and the ADMM+.
They reaffirmed the importance of solidarity andsolidarity in the bloc to effectively respond to common security challenges.Amid the swiftly changing strategic context, they said ASEAN needs to continuepromoting ties with major partners so as to maintain peace and stability in theregion.
The meeting also scrutinised the grouping’sdefence cooperation initiatives such as the ASEAN Peacekeeping Centres Networkand a network of ASEAN chemical, biological and radiological defence experts.
Deputy Defence Minister, Sen. Lt. Gen. NguyenChi Vinh, who led the Vietnamese delegation to the meetings, said together withIndonesia, Thailand and Cambodia, Vietnam has been chosen by the United Nationsto become a training site for peacekeeping forces of the region. Therefore, thecountry is ready to play a more active role to help improve ASEAN’speacekeeping capacity. It also wants to boost connections with other countriesin joint exercises, sharing experience in military medicine, search and rescueactivities.
Regarding the initiative on a network of ASEANchemical, biological and radiological defence experts, he suggested the contentof war consequences settlement be added to this network’s activities. Thisproposal was welcomed by participating countries.
For more than five decades, Vietnam, Laos andCambodia have suffered from consequences of chemical weapons left from the war.Vietnam is currently one of the leading countries in handling war consequences,and it is ready to share experience and dioxin detoxification technologies withother ASEAN countries, Vinh said.
The officer also called on the bloc to cooperatemore strongly with partners in dealing with UXO left from the war.
The ADSOM+ saw the presence of officials of theASEAN and partner nations, including India, Russia, Australia, New Zealand,China, the US, Japan and the Republic of Korea.
Deputy Secretary General of ASEAN Hoang Anh Tuanprovided updates on the bloc’s defence cooperation progress, renewing ASEAN’sviewpoint that all disputes must be resolved peacefully in line with internationallaw, and navigation and aviation freedom in the region must be ensured andrespected.
The partner countries highly valued ASEAN’s roleand voiced their support for the bloc’s central role in cooperation mechanismsfor promoting regional peace and stability, especially the ADMM+.
To prepare for the fifth ADMM in Singapore inOctober, officials gave opinions on a draft ministerial joint statement on thefight against terrorism and measures to build substantive trust.
Within the framework of the ADSOM and theADSOM+, Deputy Minister Vinh also had bilateral meetings with heads of thedelegations of Singapore, New Zealand, Australia, China, Japan and the US.-VNA
VNA