Vietnamese Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen Nguyen Chi Vinh (R) at the event (Source: VNA)
Representatives from ASEAN member countries at a meeting of ASEAN-Republic of Korea deputy defence ministers in Seoul on September 12 welcomed and highly valued the country’s New Southern Policy.
They wished that defence ties between ASEAN and the RoK will become more effective and practical, making active contributions to peace and stability in the region.
At the event, Vietnamese Deputy Defence Minister, Sen. Lieut. Gen Nguyen Chi Vinh, affirmed that the policy offers both sides a chance to foster comprehensive cooperation, including in national defence.
He shared the same view as attending delegates that the meeting mechanism will help realise the policy, thus bringing huge benefits to both the RoK and ASEAN.
Vinh also asked the RoK to pay greater attention to major areas of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM ) mechanism, such as maintaining peace and maritime security.
RoK Deputy Defence Minister Suh Choo-suk stressed that ASEAN is a top priority in the New Southern Policy, adding that the RoK is looking for cooperation on the basis of respecting consensus and ASEAN’s central role.
He suggested expanding high-level collaboration on the basis of common interest and jointly coping with traditional and non-traditional security challenges.
The host expressed wishes to establish mechanisms to foster coordination with each ASEAN member state, such as holding annual high-level meetings and meetings of leaders in logistics, armed services, defence industry, intelligence services, and holding defence cooperation agreements.
He hoped for deeper collaboration with ASEAN within the framework of working groups of the ADMM mechanism in the fields of maritime security, anti-terrorism, cyber security, and military medicine.
VNA
