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COLOMBO, SRI LANKA, Thursday 29 November 2014 - Yang Dimuliakan Datu Pekerma Jaya Major General Dato Paduka Seri Mohd Tawih bin Abdullah, Commander of Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) attended the inaugural of South and Southeast Asian Nations (SASEAN) Defence Chiefs' Dialogue - 2014 in Sri Lanka, the capital city of Colombo to discuss regional peace and security.
The SASEAN forum was a conclave of Defence Chiefs held from 27th to 29th November initiated and hosted by Sri Lanka held at the Kingsbury Hotel.
As part of the SASEAN programme, the Commander of the RBAF also had the honor and privilege to chair one of the dialogue in SASEAN 2014 with three other Heads of the SASEAN delegations India, Sri Lanka and Maldives.
Being the first session, the South and South East Asian Nations (SASEAN) Defence Chiefs' Dialogue is initiated with the objective of promoting regional peace and stability through dialogue and cooperation in the spheres of defence and security, promoting mutual trust and confidence through greater understanding of defence and security challenges, and contributing to the establishment of a SASEAN Security Community (SSC). The theme for the 2014 SASEAN Defence Chiefs Dialogue is "Promoting Security Through Dialogue and Cooperation”. This regular common forum for the Defence Chiefs of Asia is expected to reinforce the vision of The Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA).
The demographic and economic dynamics, particularly, in South and Southeast Asia are in rapid transition propelling the region into geopolitical prominence. Asia will be the most populous region in the world by 2050. It will be complemented by a youth bulge which will have an exponential impact on security and stability in the region. The rapid growth in the Asian economies will also regenerate the expansion of trade and transfer of resources in and out of the region. This resurgence will exert a pull on the geo-strategic interests of extra regional powers. In this confluence it is essential to promote security and stability in Asia for the Asian region proper. A stable and prosperous Asia will in turn contribute to the peace and security in the rest of the world.
At the sidelines of the dialogue, the Commander of RBAF held bilateral courtesy calls with four Heads of the SASEAN delegations from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan and India.