BEIJING, PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA, 19 March 2012 - His Excellency Dato Paduka Haji Mustappa bin Haji Sirat, Deputy Minister of Defence, Brunei Darussalam, undertook an official visit to the People’s Republic of China, to further strengthen defence cooperation between both countries and discuss matters relating to the preparation of Brunei Darussalam’s chairmanship of the 2nd ADMM-Plus meeting next year.
The Minister of National Defense of the People’s Republic of China, His Excellency General Liang Guanglie, received the Deputy Minister today at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, Beijing. During the bilateral meeting, both sides expressed satisfaction at the level of cooperation between the two defence establishments and reaffirmed their desires to enhance further the existing cooperation by increasing interaction through exchange of visits of senior, intermediate and junior defence and military personnel, training, naval exercises and the establishment of mechanism for dialogue and exchange of information.
Both sides reiterated the importance of the Memorandum of Understanding on Defense Cooperation signed in September 2003 between the defence establishments of Brunei Darussalam and the People’s Republic of China. The MOU is a historic and significant milestone reflecting both parties commitment to broadening defence cooperation in mutually beneficial areas.
They also stressed the importance of working closely within the framework of regional defence cooperation such as the ADMM-Plus and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF). For this purpose both sides agreed to co-host the next ARF Heads of Defence Universities/Colleges/Institutions Meeting and the ARF Defence Officials’ Dialogue.
Brunei Darussalam also briefed the Chinese side on its preparation of the Chairmanship of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting in 2013, in particular, the hosting of the 2nd ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting. The People’s Republic of China expressed its strong support for Brunei Darussalam to chair the 2nd ADMM-Plus next year. His Excellency General Liang Guanglie also reaffirmed China’s support for ASEAN to play a central role in the ADMM-Plus process and stressed the importance of upholding the principles of equality, promoting mutual trust and understanding and moving forward at a pace comfortable to all.
During the three days official visit, the Deputy Minister had the opportunity to visit the 3rd Guard Division of the Beijing Military Garrison, the State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence and Poly Technology Co Ltd.