The meeting took place when the acute respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is developing in a complicated manner. According to Lieutenant General Vu Chien Thang, Director of the Department of Foreign Relations under the Ministry of National Defense (MND), under the direction of Vietnamese MND’s leadership, relevant agencies have actively consulted with other ASEAN member countries on the initiative to build a joint statement issued by ASEAN Defense Ministers on defense cooperation against COVID-19 and received their support.
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General Ngo Xuan Lich chaired the event |
At the meeting of the ASEAN Defense Senior Officials’ Meeting Working Group (ADSOM WG) on February 18, delegates showed unanimity and agreed to submit the initiative to defense senior officials of ASEAN for approval. The officials reached a consensus on introducing it at the ADMM Retreat.
As a result, at the ADMM Retreat on February 19, ASEAN Defense Ministers issued the joint statement on defense cooperation against COVID-19. Under the joint statement, defense ministers of ASEAN agreed to boost defense cooperation against COVID-19 based on ASEAN’s initiatives and mechanisms, including the ASEAN Center of Military Medicine, meeting of ASEAN Chiefs of Military Medicine, the Conference on ASEAN Military Medicine, and the ASEAN Network of Experts in Chemistry, Biology and Radioactivity.
This demonstrates the active adaptation to newly-arising challenges and is in line with the ASEAN Chairmanship Year 2020’s theme “Cohesive and Responsive”, said Lieutenant General Thang.
Meanwhile, Major General Vu Tien Trong, Director of the Institute for Defense International Relations under the MND, assessed that the early adoption of such a joint statement proves agility and adaptation of ASEAN member countries in joining hands in coping with current non-traditional challenges, especially at a time when COVID-19 is spreading and containment requires the efforts of many countries working together.
The issuance of the joint statement received the appreciation of ASEAN member countries and other countries in the region, especially those from ADMM Plus.
“We can see the agility and adaptation of ASEAN Defense Ministers that meet ASEAN people’s expectations on quickly quelling the disease outbreak,” said General Trong.
Translated by Song Anh