Addressing the virtual meeting, General Lich expressed his belief that the online ADMM-14 has displayed a timely response by the ASEAN defense ministries to unexpected situations like the COVID-19. On behalf of the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense, General Lich thanked the ASEAN defense ministries and the ASEAN Secretariat for their support during its 2020 ASEAN Chair.
He stressed that the COVID-19 pandemic has claimed the lives of millions of people, heavily affecting the economy of each country, the region and the world, even causing risks of transformations in global geopolitics. In addition, many ASEAN members had to cope with natural disasters with huge losses of lives and property while regional peace and stability were threatened by terrorism, transnational crimes, cyber space crimes and water, to name but a few.
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Vietnamese Defense Minister General Ngo Xuan Lich (C) chairing the event |
He highlighted that ASEAN members have promoted the 2020 ASEAN theme of “cohensive and responsive” amid the complicated developments of the COVID-19. As a result, numerous initiatives were approved such as the ASEAN Fund for COVID-19 Response, the ASEAN Regional Reserve of Medical Supplies for Public Health Emergencies, and the plan for the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework (ACRF) ratified at the 37th ASEAN Summit.
The Vietnamese defense minister stated that the defense ministries and militaries are key forces in the joint efforts of each country to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. ASEAN defense ministries have maintained cooperation activities via digital platforms while enhancing collaboration in sharing information, providing medical supplies, implementing cross-border control, and researching vaccines.
At the meeting, Vietnamese Deputy Defense Minister Sr. Lt. Gen. Nguyen Chi Vinh briefed delegates on results of the ASEAN Defense Senior Officials’ Meeting (ADSOM) held via a teleconferencing mode on November 17. The ASEAN defense ministers highly valued the success of ADSOM, Vietnam’s good preparations for ADMM-14, and the country’s initiative to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Delegates agreed that ASEAN members should continue to promote ASEAN's cohesion and unity in adapting to the geopolitical and geostrategic transition by enhancing defense cooperation among them as well as with partner countries, which will contribute to responding to traditional and non-traditional security threats for regional peace, stability and development.
The ADMM-14 ratified several documents such as a standard operating procedure for ADMM, its three-year operation plan for the 2020-2022 term, and the Joint Declaration of the ASEAN Defense Ministers on Defense Cooperation for a Cohesive and Responsive ASEAN.
In his closing remarks, General Lich affirmed that the ADMM-14 has concluded successfully, contributing to effectively accelerating defense cooperation among ASEAN member states.
* The same day, General Lich chaired non-official meetings between ASEAN defense ministers and the U.S. Secretary of Defense and the Chinese Defense Minister. At the meetings, delegates discussed measures to boost defense cooperation in the time to come.
In addition, he also joined a teleconference among ASEAN defense ministers, defense leaders from the U.K., Germany, Canada, France, and representatives of the European Union and the United Nations.
Translated by Trung Thanh