Asean defense ministers vow to step up cooperation

MANILA, Philippines - Defense ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) vowed to intensify cooperation to strengthen peace and security and contribute to building the ASEAN Community.

The promise was made after the one-day retreat of ASEAN defense ministers last week in Bali, Indonesia in which the ministers and the secretary- general of ASEAN exchanged views on ways to further enhance cooperation under the framework of the ASEAN Defense Ministers Meeting (ADMM).

Ideas for developing the ADMM-Plus, in which the ministers meet with their counterparts from eight dialogue partner countries (Australia, China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Russia, and the United States), were also explored.

The defense ministers were keen to see more concrete actions in such areas as cooperation with civil society organizations in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, network of the peacekeeping training centers in ASEAN member states, and military-industry cooperation.

The ministers also exchanged views about the South China Sea and other security issues. Dr. Surin Pitsuwan, ASEAN secretary-general, briefed the ministers on the existing framework of the ASEAN-China dialogue and confidence-building in the South China Sea, including the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC).

The ministers believe they have a role to play in contributing to peace and security in the ASEAN Community, including the South China Sea.

“We know what we don’t want in our political-security community. We don’t want to be a military pact; we don’t want to do anything against any outsider; we don’t want to use force,” said Indonesian Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro, chairman of the ADMM.

“But do we know what we want to see,” he said.

He suggested that key principles can be extracted from various key ASEAN documents and agreements such as the ASEAN Charter, the ASEAN (Bangkok) Declaration and the Bali Concord I and II, among others.