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DPM Teo Attends 1st ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting-Plus
12 October 2010
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Teo Chee Hean is in Hanoi, Vietnam, to attend the inaugural ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting (ADMM)-Plus. Defence Ministers and senior defence officials from the ASEAN and "Plus" countries- Australia, China, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Russia and the United States attended the meeting. The Defence Ministers exchanged views on regional defence and security issues and discussed how ASEAN and the "Plus" countries could work together in areas of common security interests. They agreed to look at enhancing cooperation in the areas of maritime security, military medicine, counter-terrorism, peacekeeping operations as well as humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
Mr Teo said after the inaugural ADMM-Plus meeting, that the establishment of the ADMMPlus was a significant milestone in the history of ASEAN and that he is confident that it will enable member countries to work together to enhance the peace and stability in the region. Mr Teo said: "We were able to have a good discussion and exchange on issues of concern to us in the defence and security area. This exchange was carried out in a very cordial, constructive and cooperative way." Mr Teo also emphasised all countries' commitment to the ADMM-Plus. He said: "I was very gratified to hear that all the ADMM-Plus countries expressed their support for ASEAN continuing to play a central role in the ADMM-Plus and of course in the other ASEAN forums as well."
The ADMM-Plus Defence Ministers signed a Joint Declaration to reaffirm the commitment of member countries to enhance regional peace and security. They also established an ASEAN Defence Senior Officials' Meeting (ADSOM)-Plus to discuss specific areas of cooperation. As part of the ADMM-Plus programme, the Defence Ministers jointly called on Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet.
Prior to the inaugural ADMM-Plus, Mr Teo and his ASEAN counterparts met at the ADMM Retreat to finalise the preparations of ADMM-Plus. In addition, Mr Teo also attended Hanoi's Millennial Celebrations on 10 Oct 2010. Mr Teo held bilateral meetings with his defence counterparts from both the ASEAN and "Plus" countries on the sidelines of the ADMM-Plus.
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