To put it aptly, the Department of National Defense (DND) brought home more than the proverbial bacon when it recently hosted the 11th Asean Defense Ministers Meeting (ADMM) and the 4th ADMM-Plus, through its chairman Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana.
With the Philippines playing host to this year’s meetings, which incidentally marks the 50th year of the regional organization, the DND—with Lorenzana at the helm —steered the defense- and security-related meetings of the regional grouping.
As a bloc, the ADMM did not only solidify the defense and security cooperation among its members, it also fostered its collaboration with its dialogue partners under the ADMM-Plus, which includes China, the US, Russia and Australia, among others.
For the Philippines, the twin meetings did not only cement its security relations with its neighbors, Manila also got more in terms of assistance and agreements.
Regional security
“The Asean defense ministers issued a joint declaration and a joint statement on countering violent extremism, radicalization and terrorism, as well as adopted the ADMM’s three-year work program for 2017 to 2019 along with nine other documents, marking this year’s ADMM as having the highest number of outcome documents so far,” said Lorenzana in recapping the finer points of the meeting.
“To contribute to Asean community building and to the implementation of the Asean Political-Security Community blueprint 2025, we have agreed to strengthen collaboration between the ADMM and other related Asean sectoral bodies by enhancing linkages between the ADMM Track II institutions, such as the Network of Asean Defense and Security Institutions,” he added.
Since the ADMM is both a platform for dialogue and cooperation, it also spearheaded new initiatives to foster multilateral education and training activities under the chairmanship of Lorenzana.
Likewise, the ADMM also moved for the crafting of guidelines for maritime interaction, whose concept paper was adopted by the defense ministers during their meeting in Pampanga. The paper seeks to avoid untoward incidents at sea due to miscalculations.
“The guidelines shall be based on Asean principles of transparency and mutual trust and shall be in accordance with all relevant national laws, rules and regulations and international law. It shall uphold all existing maritime arrangements to include the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the CUES [Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea] and shall reaffirm Asean member-states’ commitment to resolve disputes through peaceful means without resorting to the threat or use of force in accordance with international law,” Lorenzana said.
At the ADMM-Plus, the Asean defense ministers and their dialogue partners also agreed at the necessity to keep the South China Sea open to international navigation and overflight, a position that China did not even contest.
“A majority of countries declared to continue to use the South China Sea, the waters and air, as they have been using it in the past decades, without interference from anybody,” Lorenzana said, adding that “even China did not oppose all of those statements. So I think it’s okay for China, because it’s supposed to be an open water.”
Another achievement during the twin meetings was the launching of the defense chiefs of the Asean Direct Communications Infrastructure (ADI), which would allow them to communicate and interact immediately through a secure hotline in times of crises and emergency situations, especially in the area of maritime operations.
Cooperation, agreements and training
While the defense ministers tackled the tricky issue of the South China Sea, they, however, gave emphasis on the problem of terrorism—as it currently threatens the whole region—and how they could fight it as a single force.
“Terrorism actually cuts across every country. Every country is so much concerned of terrorism because everybody is vulnerable to terrorism,” said Lorenzana, adding the defense ministers have noted the level of destruction that the problem has brought about in Marawi City.
At the sidelines and even at the center of the ADMM and the ADMM-Plus, Lorenzana sealed defense and security-cooperation agreements with Vietnam, China, Russia and Australia.
With Hanoi, Lorenzana and Vietnamese Defense Minister Ngo Xuan Lich agreed to take the defense relations between Vietnam and the Philippines to new heights by stepping up their naval cooperation and collaboration.
Both also agreed to put up concrete mechanisms between the two countries’ navies to prevent a repeat of a recent incident in Pangasinan wherein two Vietnamese fishermen were killed in an anti-poaching operation by the Philippine Navy.
“Our defense cooperation with Vietnam has been very positive, and we intend to build on those successes,” Lorenzana said.
The defense secretary said the Armed Forces may even consider tapping Hanoi in developing the Philippine defense industry, as he noted how Vietnam has built and improved its own defense landscape.
Lorenzana and Lich also agreed to explore the possibility of increasing the existing opportunities for exchange of senior and junior officers, information and intelligence exchange, joint training; and addressing nontraditional security challenges, such as humanitarian assistance and disaster response, piracy, illegal drugs and terrorism.
On the day Lorenzana opened up the ADMM gathering, he and Russian Defense Minister General Sergey Shoygu signed two agreements, one for military-technical cooperation between Manila and Moscow, and second, for the procurement of defense articles from Rosoboronexport, a Russian state-owned company.
Lorenzana and Rosoboronexport Director-General Alexander A. Mikheev signed the second agreement.
The following day at the sidelines of the ADMM, Lorenzana and Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne announced the decision of Canberra for Australian forces to train Filipino soldiers in urban warfare.
The training was among the assistances that both countries have arrived at following discussions between Lorenzana and Payne.
“In addition, Australia has already offered to provide trainings based on the Philippines’ needs and Australia’s capabilities. At the outset, this includes airspace coordination, urban warfare and maritime operations, among others,” Lorenzana said.
Payne said the urban-warfare training for the Philippine military forms part of Australia’s efforts to curb the spread of the Islamic State.
“The spread of Daesh is a threat to regional security, including the security of Australia. We recognize that no single country can address the threat of terrorism on its own,” she said.
Lorenzana separately met later with his Chinese counterpart Gen. Chang Wanquan at Camp Aguinaldo, wherein both have agreed to increase Manila and Beijing’s security engagements in the coming months.
During their meeting, the two officials discussed the enhancement of cooperation in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism that focuses on intelligence sharing, joint counterterrorism exercises and other specialized training.
They also explored the possibility of enhancing maritime cooperation, with particular focus on humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HADR), and antipiracy operations in Mindanao’s waters.
They have agreed to increase visits of naval vessels as a sign of goodwill and friendship between Beijing and Manila.
Agreeing that it will be to the best interest of both countries, Lorenzana and Chang decided to increase the military-to-military personnel exchanges between junior and field-grade officers of both armed forces.
“Riding on the improvement of our defense relations, it is only proper for us to move forward,” Lorenzana declared.
The meeting gave Lorenzana the opportunity to personally thank Chang over China’s support to the counterterrorism terrorism operations in Marawi, saying that its earlier donations of rifles and ammunition “helped a lot in our fight against the terrorists in Marawi.”
In return, Chang hinted that China plans to donate another batch of weapons and equipment later this year or early next year.
Military aid
Just a day after Lorenzana notched military cooperation agreements with Russia, Moscow handed over to the Philippine military 5,000 units of AK-47M Kalashnikov rifles, 20 multipurpose vehicles, 1 million pieces of ammunition and 5,000 steel helmets.
The turning over of the donations was witnessed by Lorenzana and Shoygu, President Duterte, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano and Russian Ambassador to the Philippines Igor Khovaev.
Image credits: AP/Bullit Marquez