BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Tuesday 3 Feb 2015 – The Initial Planning Conference (IPC) for the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) Maritime Security and Counter Terrorism (MS & CT) Exercise begins today at the Centrepoint Hotel, Gadong, Brunei Darussalam. The exercise is scheduled in May 2016.
The IPC was co-chaired by Colonel (U) Haji Hamzah bin Haji Sahat, Joint Force Commander, Royal Brunei Armed Forces, and Brigadier General Tan Kok Ming Desmond, Director Joint Operations, Singapore Armed Forces. It was attended by representatives from ADMM-Plus Member States and ASEAN Secretariat.
During the conference, participants were briefed on the general overview of the exercise as well as the Sequence Of Events both in Brunei Darussalam and Singapore. The ADMM-Plus participants also discussed the exercise organisational structure and other exercise logistics and administration matters.
Prior to the IPC, the Royal Brunei Armed Forces and Singapore Armed Forces held a bilateral meeting on 2 February 2015. A Steering Committee Meeting was also convened between the Co-Chairs of the Expert Working Group (EWG) on Maritime Security and the Expert Working Group (EWG) on Counter Terrorism, which are Brunei Darussalam and New Zealand, and Singapore and Australia, respectively.
The work plan for the conduct of the ADMM-Plus MS & CT Ex was adopted at the ASEAN Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting (ADSOM) and the ASEAN Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting-Plus (ADSOM-Plus) in Nay Pyi Daw, Myanmar, in April 2014, and further welcomed at the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting in Nay Pyi Daw in May 2014.
This IPC is a valued process and a clear demonstration of the strong support and commitments of the ADMM-Plus mechanism as the premiere platform in this region for practical cooperation.