ASEAN DEFENCE MINISTERS MEETING

• Recently, the defence minister addressed the 8th ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting (ADMM) Plus.
• The ADMM-Plus is a platform for ASEAN and its eight Dialogue Partners.

Important points:

• India called for an open and inclusive order in Indo-Pacific based upon respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of nations.
• Supports freedom of navigation, overflight, and unimpeded commerce in the international waterways including the South China Sea, India hopes that the Code of Conduct negotiations (for South China Sea) will lead to outcomes that are in keeping with international law, including the the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
• Recently, ASEAN and China agreed to expedite the resumption of negotiations on the code, which were halted by the pandemic.
• China and ASEAN started negotiations in 2013 on a supposedly binding code of conduct.
• Stressed on peaceful resolutions of disputes through dialogue and adherence to international rules and laws.
• Need new systems to address the emerging challenges to international peace and security.

Act East Policy:

• The key elements of the Act East Policy aims to promote economic cooperation, cultural ties and develop strategic relationships with countries in the Indo-Pacific region through continuous engagement at bilateral, regional and multilateral levels.
• Called for collective cooperation to fully disrupt terror organisations and their networks.
• Identify the perpetrators and hold them accountable and ensure that strong measures are taken against those who support and finance terrorism and provide sanctuary to terrorists.
• As a member of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) India remains committed to combat financing of terrorism.
• FATF is the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog.
• Called for a multi-stakeholder approach, guided by democratic values, with a governance structure that is open and inclusive and a secure, open and stable internet with due respect to sovereignty of countries, that would drive the future of cyberspace.
• Globally available patent free vaccines, unhindered supply chains and greater global medical capacities are some of the lines of effort that India has suggested for a combined effort.
• South Africa and India have called for the World Trade Organization (WTO) to suspend intellectual property (IP) rights related to Covid-19 to ensure equitable sharing of vaccines and new technology to control the pandemic.

ADMM-Plus.

• The India-ASEAN strategic partnership has been strengthened by virtue of flourishing cultural and civilisational links and enhanced people-to-people cooperation.
• The 2nd ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) in 2007 at Singapore adopted a resolution to establish the ADMM-Plus.
• The first ADMM-Plus was convened at Hanoi, Vietnam in 2010.
• Brunei is the Chair of the ADMM Plus forum for the year 2021.
• It is an annual meeting of Defence Ministers of 10 ASEAN countries and eight dialogue partner countries.
• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional organization which was established to promote political and social stability amid rising tensions among the Asia-Pacific’s post-colonial states.
• The ADMM-Plus countries include ten ASEAN Member States and eight Plus countries, namely Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, and the United States.
• It aims to promote mutual trust and confidence between defence establishments through greater dialogue and transparency.
• Maritime security, counter-terrorism, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, peacekeeping operations and military medicine.

SOURCE: THE HINDU,THE ECONOMIC TIMES,MINT