ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus

• 11 Dec 2020

Why in News

Recently, India’s defence minister attended the 14^th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) Plus organized online at Hanoi, Vietnam.

• It marked the 10^th anniversary of ADMM Plus.
• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional organization which was established to promote political and social stability amid rising tensions among the Asia-Pacific’s post-colonial states.

Key Points

• About ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus:
  
  • Creation: The 2^nd ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) in 2007 at Singapore adopted a resolution to establish the ADMM-Plus.
    
    • The first ADMM-Plus was convened at Hanoi, Vietnam in 2010.
  • Objective: The ADMM-Plus is a platform for ASEAN (The Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and it’s eight Dialogue Partners to strengthen security and defence cooperation for peace, stability, and development in the region.
  • Membership: The ADMM-Plus countries include ten ASEAN Member States and eight Plus countries, namely Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, and the United States.
  • Chairman: The chairmanship of the ADMM-Plus follows the chairmanship of the ADMM.
    
    • This year it was chaired by Vietnam.
  • Aim: It aims to promote mutual trust and confidence between defence establishments through greater dialogue and transparency.
  • Areas of cooperation: Maritime security, counter-terrorism, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, peacekeeping operations and military medicine.
• The current meet comes at the time when India and China remain engaged in a military standoff along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, and tensions continue to mount in the South China Sea.
• India’s Stand at the Meet:
  
  • Future: The future of the South East Asian Countries will be defined by their ability to collectively respond to challenges in the region, based on the fundamentals of freedom, inclusivity and openness.
  • Covid-19: The response to the pandemic needs to be collective and collaborative.
  • Challenges: Threats to the rules-based order, maritime security, cyber-related crimes and terrorism.
    
    • Challenges are becoming increasingly trans-boundary in character which requires closer military-to-military interactions and cooperation amongst the ADMM-Plus countries.
  • Tools for Cooperation: The conduct of field training exercises and table-top exercises amongst the ADMM-Plus countries are important tools to understand each other, cooperate to enhance security and maintain peace in the region.
    
    • Example: MAITREE which is an annual training event that is conducted in India and Thailand alternatively, since 2006.

Source:IE