ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting-Plus Concludes

Minister for Defence, the Hon Christopher Pyne MP, attended the fifth Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Defence Ministers’ Meeting‑Plus (the ADMM-Plus) in Singapore, on 19-20 October.

Minister Pyne discussed multilateral defence cooperation and regional security with his counterparts from across South East Asia and the wider Indo-Pacific.

“Australia’s engagement with the ADMM-Plus is an important element of our support for ASEAN and the broader rules-based order in our region,” Minister Pyne said.

ADMM-Plus Ministers agreed to practical steps to make our region safer and more secure through two joint declarations including on countering terrorism.

The ADMM-Plus framework enables Australia to work with partners to promote trust, transparency and cooperation between regional militaries.

“This meeting provided a great opportunity to discuss shared challenges and the practical ways we can address those challenges, together, such as through a strengthening of counter-termism coordination,” Minister Pyne said.

While in Singapore, Minister Pyne met his counterparts including from Brunei, China, India, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, and the United States of America.