The two-day ASEAN Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting (ADSOM) opened virtually on March 24 under the chair of the Permanent Secretary of the Brunei Ministry of Defence, Brigadier General (retired) Dato Seri Pahlawan Shahril Anwar Bin Haji Ma’awiah.
Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen Hoang Xuan Chien (L), head of the Vietnamese delegation, at the meeting (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – The two-day ASEAN Defence SeniorOfficials’ Meeting (ADSOM) openedvirtually on March 24 under the chair of the Permanent Secretary of the BruneiMinistry of Defence, Brigadier General (retired) Dato Seri Pahlawan ShahrilAnwar Bin Haji Ma’awiah.
In his opening speech, the Bruneian official said amidCOVID-19 challenges, it is important to step up regional defence cooperationfor peace and safety in ASEAN.
Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for ASEAN PoliticalSecurity Community Robert Matheus Michael Tene spoke highly of Vietnam’schairmanship last year for leading the bloc through a year full of challenges.
He called on member states to increase defence collaborationin contribution to regional peace and security regionally and globally.
At the meeting, participants heard updates on ASEANcooperation over the past time and a report from Brunei – the current Chair ofASEAN – on outcomes of the recent ADSOM’s Working Group (ADSOM WG) meeting and 18thASEAN Chiefs of Defence Forces' Meeting (ACDFM-18).
The ADSOM reviewed documents which had been discussed andsubmitted by the ADSOM WG, including those on new conceptions and discussionsin the ASEAN Defence Minister's Meeting (ADMM), and draft joint statements ofthe 15th ADMM and the 8th ADMM Plus.
It also considered recommendations of ASEAN’s partnernations, including the schedule for ASEAN Plus One’s informal meetings ofdefence ministers and the ASEAN – Russia joint naval maneuver.
A Vietnamese delegation led by Deputy Defence Minister Sen.Lieut. Gen Hoang Xuan Chien attended the meeting./.
The ASEAN Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting (ADSOM) was held via video conferencing on November 17 under the chair of Deputy Defence Minister and head of ADSOM Vietnam, Sen. Lieut. Gen. Nguyen Chi Vinh.
The ASEAN Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting Plus Working Group (ADSOM WG) was held via video conferencing on November 18, chaired by Lieut. Gen. Vu Chien Thang, Director of the Ministry of Defence’s Foreign Relations Department and head of ADSOM WG Vietnam.
The ASEAN Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting Plus (ADSOM+) was held online on November 19 under the chair of Deputy Defence Minister, Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh.
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Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen Hoang Xuan Chien (L), head of the Vietnamese delegation, at the meeting (Photo: VNA) 
