Asean Defence Ministers Meeting Today

28/8/2012
Source: The Borneo Post

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: The Initial Planning Conference (IPC) for the Asean Defence Ministers Meeting-Plus Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief and Military Medicine Exercise (ADMM-Plus HADR and MM Ex) begins today (August 28) at the Rizqun International Hotel, Gadong, Borneo Bulletin reported.

The IPC commences with the five-nations meeting which consists of Brunei Darussalam and the Co-Chairs of the ADMM-Plus Experts’ Working Groups (ADMM-Plus EWG) on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) and Military Medicine (MM), namely, Vietnam, China, Singapore and Japan. The aim of this meeting is to reach an understanding on the general overview and preliminary planning details of the exercise.

This is to be followed by a meeting involving Asean countries on the 2nd Asean Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Exercise (2nd AHX), which Brunei Darussalam will also be hosting next year.

The highlight of the IPC, however, is the meeting of the ADMM-Plus countries to be chaired by First Admiral Dato Seri Pahlawan Abdul Aziz Haji Mohd Tamit, Joint Force Commander, Royal Brunei Armed Forces. Both the Co-Chairs of the ADMM-Plus EWGs on HADR and MM are also to lead the discussion in this meeting. Discussions are expected to include contribution by the ADMM-Plus countries on military personnel as well as assets and capabilities, and any other exercise logistics and administration matters.

The ADMM-Plus HADR and MM Ex will be the first exercise under the ADMM-Plus mechanism that will represent a concrete demonstration of practical cooperation. It was supported at the Asean Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting (ADSOM) and the Asean Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting-Plus (ADSOM-Plus) in Siem Reap, Cambodia, in April 2012, and endorsed by Asean Defence Ministers at their meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in May 2012. The exercise is scheduled to be held from June 16-20 next year, back-to-back with the 2nd AHX. Both exercises are the major deliverables during Brunei Darussalam’s ADMM and ADMM-Plus Chairmanship next year.

The ADMM-Plus countries consist of the 10 Asean countries and Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russia and USA.