KUALA LUMPUR: Senior Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein (pic) attended the 16th Asean Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) to seek closer defence ties between the member countries.
The day-long meeting yesterday was chaired by Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Samdech Pichey Sena Tea Banh, as the chairman of ADMM 2022.
The Malaysian Defence Ministry, in a statement, said the meeting is a significant platform for Asean defence ministers to further strengthen the spirit of Asean togetherness especially in the context of defence cooperation in the region, reported Bernama.
The statement added that the presence of Hishammuddin and the Malaysian delegation to the 16th ADMM is of utmost importance to enable Malaysia and other Asean member countries to discuss and refine issues of mutual interest pertaining to defence as well as regional and international security.
According to the statement, the Asean-China Defence Ministers’ Informal Meeting and the Asean-Japan Defence Ministers’ Informal Meeting were also held alongside the ADMM.
The two meetings are expected, among others, to focus on efforts to further strengthen Asean-China and Asean-Japan regional defence cooperation.
Hishammuddin, along with other Asean defence ministers, are also scheduled to pay a courtesy call on Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen after the two meetings are over.
Although yesterday’s meeting involved representatives of Myanmar’s State Administration Council (SAC), this does not mean that Malaysia recognises the SAC as the legitimate government of Myanmar, according to the statement.
“Malaysia has always stressed that the SAC must immediately implement the things that have been agreed in the Five-Point Consensus (5PC) to find a solution to the political crisis in Myanmar,” read the statement.
In the meantime, Hishammuddin also held a bilateral meeting with Sena Tea Banh on Tuesday.
Among the matters discussed was to further enhance defence cooperation in carrying out peacekeeping operations around the world, especially the involvement of women peacekeepers in Asean.
An agreement was reached whereby Cambodia will send its female peacekeepers to the Malaysia Peacekeeping Centre in Port Dickson to undergo further training to further improve their skills in conducting peacekeeping operations.
