10^th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus | 20 Nov 2023

Source: PIB

Why in News?

Recently, the Defence Minister of India has participated in the 10th Association of SouthEast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) in Jakarta, Indonesia.

What are the Key Highlights of the Indian Address in ADMM-Plus Meeting?

• ASEAN Centrality: 
  • India affirmed the importance of ASEAN's central role and commended its efforts in fostering dialogue and consensus in the region.
• Commitment to International Laws: 
  • India reiterated its commitment to freedom of navigation, overflight, and lawful commerce in international waters, aligning with international laws, notably the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982.
• Regional Security Initiatives: 
  • India advocated for consultative and development-oriented security initiatives that reflect consensus among stakeholders, aiming for practical, forward-looking cooperation within ADMM-Plus to enhance Maritime Security in the region.
• Dialogue and Diplomacy: 
  • India stressed the significance of dialogue and diplomacy for enduring peace and global stability, emphasizing moving away from an "us versus them" mindset, asserting that this is not an era of war.
    
• Collaborative Initiatives: 
  • India appreciated ASEAN Member States' participation in joint initiatives like the Initiative for Women in UN Peacekeeping Operations, Initiative for Marine Plastic Pollution Response, ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise, and Expert Working Group (EWG) on Humanitarian Assistance & Disaster Relief (HADR).
    • India proposed to co-chair the EWG on Counter-Terrorism, a concern endorsed by ADMM-Plus due to terrorism's serious threat in the ASEAN region.
    • In the present cycle from 2021-2024, India is co-chairing EWG on HADR along with Indonesia.

What is ADMM-Plus?

• About:
  • The ADMM-Plus is a platform for ASEAN (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) and its eight Dialogue Partners Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russia and the United States (collectively referred to as the “Plus Countries”), to strengthen security and defence cooperation for peace, stability, and development in the region. 
    • The ADMM is the highest defence consultative and cooperative mechanism in ASEAN.
• Establishment:
  • The Inaugural ADMM-Plus was convened in Ha Noi, Viet Nam, in 2010.
  • Since 2017, the ADMM-Plus meets annually, to allow enhanced dialogue and cooperation among ASEAN and the Plus Countries in the midst of an increasingly challenging regional security environment.
• Objectives:
  • To benefit ASEAN Member States in building capacity to address shared security challenges, while cognisant of the differing capacities of various ASEAN Member States.
  • To promote mutual trust and confidence between defence establishments through greater dialogue and transparency;
  • To enhance regional peace and stability through cooperation in defence and security, in view of the transnational security challenges the region faces;
  • To facilitate the implementation of the Vientiane Action Programme, which calls for ASEAN to build a peaceful, secure and prosperous ASEAN, and to adopt greater outward-looking external relation strategies with our friends and Dialogue Partners.
• Achievements:
  • The ADMM-Plus has become an effective platform for practical cooperation among the participating countries’ defence establishments. 
  • The ADMM-Plus currently focuses on seven areas of practical cooperation, namely maritime security (MS), counter-terrorism (CT), humanitarian assistance and disaster management (HADR), peacekeeping operations (PKO), military medicine (MM), humanitarian mine action (HMA) and cyber security (CS).  
  • Experts’ Working Groups (EWGs) have been established to facilitate cooperation in these areas. 
  • The EWGs are each co-chaired by one ASEAN Member States and one Plus Country, operating in a three-year cycle.