ASEAN Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting Plus Working Group held video conference
The Ministry of National Defence held a video conference of the ASEAN Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting Plus Working Group (ADSOM+ WG) in Hanoi on June 30.
The video conference on June 30 was chaired by the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defence (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) - The Ministryof National Defence held a video conference of the ASEAN Defence SeniorOfficials’ Meeting Plus Working Group (ADSOM+ WG) in Hanoi on June 30.
The meeting was attended by heads of the ADSOMWGs of nine other ASEAN members, officials from eight partner countries, namelyRussia, China, the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, New Zealand,and India, and representatives from the ASEAN Secretariat.
It aimed to enhance substantive defencecooperation between ASEAN countries and partners within the framework of theASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM+) and to prepare for the onlineADSOM+ slated for July 7. It also discussed issues relating to activities ofADMM+ experts' working groups and guests to be invited to the ceremony marking ten yearsof the ADMM+ mechanism.
Addressing the conference, Lt. Gen. Vu ChienThang, Director of the ministry’s department for external relations and head ofthe country’s ADSOM WG, announced the successful organisation of the onlinetable-top exercise on COVID-19 response for ASEAN nations’ military medicineforces on May 27.
The exercise was one of the practical jointactivities held to carry out the Joint Statement of the ASEAN Defence Ministerson Defence Cooperation Against Disease Outbreaks, adopted in Hanoi lastFebruary, he said, noting that the ministry wishes to continue promotingsubstantive cooperation within the framework of the ADMM and ADMM+ so as toaffirm defence forces’ role in joint efforts against disease outbreaks.
Talking to the press after the conference, Sen.Lt. Col. Pham Manh Thang, deputy director of the department for externalrelations, highlighted the event’s success, which showed ASEAN and the eightpartner countries’ attention to and support for Vietnam’s chairmanship of thebloc in 2020. They also highly valued the host’s activeness, proactiveness, andflexibility amid the complex developments of COVID-19.
The results of the conference will be reportedto the ADSOM+ on July 7, he added./.
By successfully organising the teleconferenced 36th ASEAN Summit amid complex developments of COVID-19, Vietnam has once again affirmed its proactive and responsible chairmanship of ASEAN in 2020, which is also the common assessment shared by many foreign leaders and experts.
The ASEAN Leaders’ Interface with Representatives of ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) as part of the virtual 36th ASEAN Summit on June 26 was a success particularly in terms of the government – parliament connection, said Chairman of the National Assembly (NA) Committee for External Relations Nguyen Van Giau on the sideline of the event.
German and Austrian media recently have run stories about the 36th ASEAN Summit, which was held on June 26 via video conference under the chair of Vietnam.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo affirmed on June 28 that the US welcomes the vision statement of ASEAN leaders, which was adopted at the recent 36th ASEAN Summit.
The Republic of Korea (RoK), China and Japan agreed on May 3 to reinforce the regional financial safety net, along with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), by launching a new financing facility programme meant to extend greater support in case of a financial crisis.
A technical issue combined with an extreme heatwave was blamed for a series of explosions at a military base that killed 20 soldiers and injured several others in Cambodia on April 27, the country’s Ministry of Defence said in a May 2 statement as reported by the Xinhua news agency.
The Customs Department of Thailand is scheduled to commence the collection of value-added tax (VAT) on imported goods sent via postal services, regardless of the goods value, starting in May.
A lecturer from Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Medicine has warned Thais to be more vigilant against COVID-19, saying infection rates appeare to be worsening with higher hospital admissions, deaths and severe cases.
Malaysia should harness the collective expertise and resources to drive sustainable growth and development of the halal industry, according to Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Zafrul Abdul Aziz.
Laos has officially restored the 10% value-added tax (VAT) rate starting May 1, in a bid to support the country’s budget revenue and socio-economic development.
The ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) entered its second plenary session in Hanoi on the afternoon of April 23, discussing ways to ensure comprehensive security for the people-centred ASEAN Community.
The first session of the ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) in Hanoi on April 23 focused on fast and sustainable growth for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The Canada-ASEAN Business Council (CABC) and the ASEAN Alliance on Carbon Markets (AACM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration and accelerate the implementation of carbon crediting programmes across Southeast Asia.
ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn reaffirmed ASEAN leaders' commitment to empowering the youth to unleash their full potential when he had a dialogue with ASEAN youth in Hanoi on April 22 on the sidelines of the ASEAN Future Forum (AF 2024).
The Thai Government is being urged to increase the proportion of renewable power generation to more than the target of 50% set in the power development plan (PDP).
The Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) of Indonesia on April 21 lifted its tsunami advisory issued previously following the eruption of Mount Ruang in Sitaro district of North Sulawesi province.
Thailand expects to export about 1 million tonnes of durian, valued at an estimated 130 billion THB (3.53 billion USD) this year, with most of the shipments to China, according to Minister of Agriculture Thammanat Prompao.
The 72nd meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation (AWGIPC) and related meetings are being held by the Ministry of Science and Technology’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) of Vietnam in the central city of Da Nang on April 22-26.
Enhancing regional food security and tackling the pressing challenges of climate change will be key agendas defining Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025, Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat (lower house) Johari Abdul told the press on April 19.
The video conference on June 30 was chaired by the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defence (Photo: VNA) 
