BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, 4 November 2014 - High-level military leaders and representatives from various countries in the Asia-Pacific region are meeting in Bandar Seri Begawan from 3 to 6 November 2014 for the Chiefs of Defence Conference (CHOD) 2014.
Brunei Darussalam is represented by the Commander of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF), Yang Dimuliakan Pehin Datu Pekerma Jaya Major General Dato Paduka Seri Mohd Tawih bin Abdullah.
Jointly organised by the United States Pacific Command (USPACOM) and the RBAF, the conference is attended by military leaders and representatives from 26 countries - Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China, France, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Tonga, United Kingdom, United States and Vietnam.
Themed ‘Multilateralism: Practical Cooperation towards Shared Responsibilities’, the four-day conference promotes open dialogue for militaries to enhance cooperation and better respond to common security challenges in more concrete and practical ways.
The keynote address was delivered by the Deputy Minister of Defence, Dato Paduka Haji Mustappa bin Haji Sirat. His keynote address on Defence Cooperation in the context of Multilateral Diplomacy in the Region, highlighted, that defence has always been an important dimension in multilateralism. It reinforced the fundamental notion and principles of sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity and the lofty objectives of maintaining peace, security and stability.
He observed that through history, countries are presented with a range of policy options in multilateralism in defence diplomacy from practical cooperation, defence arrangements such as the Five Power Defence Arrangement, military alliances that of NATO to a group of countries that shares a common defence policies and common security.
The Deputy Minister stated that ASEAN has been at the forefront of multilateralism and long recognised the importance of defence cooperation in addressing ASEAN’s security challenges. The journey of building trust and confidence has been long and intricate in which, the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting in Kuala Lumpur is an important milestone and formed only 40 years after ASEAN formation.
He highlighted the challenge then was to build comfort level, mutual trust and confidence and personal friendships. Dialogue and Consensus remain the main thrust of ASEAN defence diplomacy while maintaining pace and comfort level as a measure to success. Today, ASEAN relations have become more valuable as defence cooperation will be cemented with formation of the ASEAN Charter and creation of ASEAN Political and Security Community. ASEAN defence diplomacy is described as those under the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting, the ASEAN Chiefs of Defence Forces Informal Meeting, the ARF Defence Officials’ Dialogue and all other related meetings.
On future prospects of defence diplomacy, he saw that cooperation in peace support activities or Military Operations Other Than War (MOOTW) as important in which the value of MOOTW rests in its actual practice of preventing conflict. The Deputy Minister viewed that given the political will, the potential for defence cooperation remains vast where there has been ‘no lack of goodwill and determination to progress’. In this regard, he believed this lies in the value of CHOD as a unique gathering of senior military leaders. The essence of multilateralism is to clearly understand and appreciate differences and work towards establishing the close friendships that would be of value for developing meaningful cooperation in the future.
At the sidelines of CHOD, various bilateral meetings between participating countries have also been held.
Initiated in 1998 by USPACOM, CHOD serves as an annual regional avenue that gives top military leaders the opportunity to come together, interact closely and discuss cooperative matters relating to defence and security. Its continued relevance is a strong reflection of its importance in shaping a more robust cooperative dynamic in addressing the multi-faceted security challenges in the Asia-Pacific.
This is the first time that Brunei Darussalam is co-hosting CHOD with the United States.