SINGAPORE, July 13 (Xinhua) -- Senior defence officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries and eight partner countries in the Asia-Pacific region met in Singapore this week, to discuss ideas to strengthen regional security cooperation, according to a media release from the Singaporean government.
The media release said Chan Yeng Kit, Permanent Secretary of Defence Development at Singapore's Ministry of Defence, chaired the ASEAN Defence Senior Officials' Meeting on Wednesday and Thursday, in which the senior officials discussed various proposals for ASEAN defence cooperation.
The proposals include initiatives to strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation, enhance ASEAN's capacity to defend against chemical, biological, and radiological threats, and establish confidence building measures among regional militaries to prevent miscalculations or mishaps.
In particular, officials discussed stepping up counter-terrorism cooperation among ASEAN defence establishments in the areas of "Resilience, Response, Recovery" to deter terrorist attacks, ensure swift responses to terror threats, and enhance rehabilitation and recovery efforts for areas affected by terrorism.
Chan also chaired the ASEAN Defence Senior Officials' Meeting-Plus (ADSOM-Plus) here on Friday, which is a platform for senior defence officials from ASEAN and Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia and the United States to discuss defence cooperation.
The media release said the senior officials discussed recent ideas to enhance practical defence cooperation at the Friday meeting, focusing on key areas such as counter-terrorism, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, maritime security, and cyber security.
