JOINT DECLARATIONOF THE ASEAN DEFENCE MINISTERS ON

PROMOTING DEFENCE COOPERATION FOR ADYNAMIC ASEAN COMMUNITY

WE, the Defence Ministers of the Kingdom of Cambodia, theRepublic of lndonesia, the Lao People's DemocraticRepublic, Malaysia, the Republic of the Union of Myanmar,the Republic of the Philippines, the Republic of Singapore,the Kingdom of Thailand, and the Socialist Republic of VietNam, 'the Minister of Energy and lndustry at the PrimeMinister's Office of Brunei Darussalam, gathered here in

Vientiane, the Lao People's Democratic Republic on 25 May2016 for the 1Oth ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting(hereinafter referred to as "ADMM");

ADHERING with full commitments to the purposes andprinciples of the ASEAN Charter that are to serve theinterests of the peoples of the ASEAN Member States and toensure they live in peace with one another and the world atlarge in line with the ASEAN motto "One Vision, One ldentityand One Caring and Sharing Community";

WELCOMING the formal establishment of the ASEANCommunity 2015 on 31 December 2015 comprising theASEAN Political-Security Community (APSC), the ASEANEconomic Community (AEC) and the ASEAN Socio-CulturalCommunity (ASCC), which is a culmination of a five-decadelong effort of community building since the signing of theBangkok Declaration in 1967;

WELCOMING the adoption of the 'ASEAN 2025: ForgingAhead Together" especially the APSC Blueprint 2CI25 at the27th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, providingpractical directions for defence capacity building and

cooperation between and amongst the ASEAN MemberStates and the Plus countries in responding to existing andfuture challenges, including non-traditional security issues,particularly transnational crimes and transboundarychallenges in an effective and timely manner;

REAFFIRMING ASEAN's role and its centrality as a keydriving force in defence and security cooperation with thePlus countries in an open, transparent and inclusivearchitecture;

AGKNOWLEDGING the inaugural and monumentalmilestone of the ADMM in Kuala Lumpur in 2006 that lays avital foundation for defence cooperative mechanismsbetween the ASEAN Member States and inspired by the tenyears of achievements of the ADMM in maintaining regionalpeace, security, stability and prosperity;

COGNISANT of the significant achievements and progressof defence and military interactions that have led to theestablishment of various fundamental mechanisms namelyASEAN ' Defence Establishments and Civil SocietyOrganisations (CSOs) Cooperation on Non-TraditionalSecurity, the Use of ASEAN Military Assets and Capacities inHumanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR),ASEAN Peacekeeping Centers Network (APCN), ASEANDefence lndustry Collaboration (ADIC), ADMM LogisticsSupport Framework (LSF), ASEAN Defence lnteractionProgramme (ADIP), ADMM Direct Communications Link(DCL), ASEAN Militaries Ready Group (AMRG) on HADRand ASEAN Center of Military Medicine (ACMM);

SUPPORTING the results of the 1't Consultative Group (CG)of ADIC and 4th ADIC Workshop that finalised theFramework for the lmplementation of ADIC with prospectsfor future defence industry cooperation amongst the ASEANMember States;

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WELCOMING the significant outcomes of the 1Oth ADMMheld on 25 May 2016 in Vientiane, Lao People's DemocraticRepublic under the theme of "Promoting DefenceCooperation for a Dynamic ASEAN Community" aiming tofoster a united, resilient and prosperous community;

WELCOMING the meaningful activities undertaken tocommemorate the 1Oth Anniversary of the ADMM;

UNDERSCORING the commitment of all parties to fully andeffectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct ofParties in the South China Sea (DOC), ASEAN's Six-PointPrinciples on the South China Sea and the Joint Statementof the 1sth ASEAN-China Summit on the 1Oth Anniversary ofthe DOC, and reiterating the importance of expeditiouslyworking towards an early conclusion of the Code of Conductin the South China Sea (COC);

RECOGNISING the inaugural and historic milestone of theADMM-Plus platform and encouraged by the continuousprogress in the six areas of defence cooperation betweenthe ASEAN Member States and the Plus countries;

GOMMENDING the hard work and efforts of the ADMM-PlusExperts' Working Groups (EWGs) in six areas of cooperationnamely HADR, Maritime Security (MS), Military Medicine(MM), Counter Terrorism (CT), Peacekeeping Operations(PKO) and Humanitarian Mine Action (HMA);

NOTING the conduct of the ADMM-PIus exercises such ason PKO and HMA and on CT and MS;

WELCOMING the success of the 13th ASEAN Chiefs ofDefence Forces lnformal Meeting (ACDFIM) that contributesto the promotion of mutual trust, confidence and militaryto-military cooperation between and amongst the ASEANMember States;

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NOTING the outcomes of the 9th Network of ASEAN Defenceand Security lnstitutions (NADI) and its Track ll DefenceDiplomacy role in providing an important proposal fordefence cooperation in handling emerging security issuesand challenges;

CONCERNED over the frequency, scale and complexityposted by non-traditional threats and reaffirming the need,commitment and collective responsibility of the ADMM toaddress such threats to promote peace, security andprosperity of the region;

CONDEMNING strongly the terrorist attack in Jakarta,lndonesia on 14 January 2016, that caused the loss ofinnocent lives, injuries, and damages to properties andextending our deepest sympathies and solidarity withlndonesia and the victims' families, and expressing concernsover the rise of global spread of lslamic State (lS) and otherterrorist and radicalised groups and their activities creatingthreats to both regional and global peace and stability;

HEREBY DECLARE TO:

Strengthen the ADMM's efforts in promoting regionalpeace and security through dialogues and cooperationtowards a dynamic ASEAN Community;

Support the existing framework and new initiatives ofpractical cooperation of ASEAN defence forces basedon the principles of respect for sovereignty andterritorial integrity, consensus-based decision making,participation on the basis of a flexible, voluntary andnon-binding nature, assets remaining under nationalcommand and control and at a pace comfortable to allto promote open and inclusive cooperation toeffectively address contemporary security challengesin accordance with the ASEAN Charter andinternational law;

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3. Welcome the proof-of-concept of Phase 1 of the DCLin the ADMM Process and the adoption of theStandard Operating Procedure and look fonrvard to theofficial launch which in effect, brings about the fullimplementation and operationalisation of Phase 1 ofthe DCL as a permanent, rapid, reliable andconfidential means of communication between theASEAN Defence Ministers to arrive at mutual decisionin handling crisis or emergency situations;

Adopt the Terms of Reference (TOR) of the ACMM,which outlines the operational details and modalitiesfor its implementation;

Adopt the Concept Paper on the Establishment of theADMM-Plus EWG on Cyber Security, which will serveas a framework for cooperation on cyber securityamong the ADMM-Plus;

Adopt the TOR of the AMRG on HADR which ouflinesthe principles and modalities for its implementation;

Welcome the adoption of the ADMM LSF asguidelines towards effective execution of logistics inASEAN multinational response operations, which wasvalidated and reviewed during the ADMM LSF Table-Top Exercise, held in Bandar Seri Begawan, BruneiDarussalam;

Acknowledge the adoption of the Framework for thelmplementation of ADIC, which would serye asguidelines for future defence industry cooperation;

lntensify the practical cooperation in the ADMM-PlusEWGs to strengthen mutual trust, confidence andcapacity in addressing security issues of commonconcerns;

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Commit to support the ADMM-Plus exercises such asCommand Post Exercises and Field Training Exerciseson HADR and MM; and MS to be conducted in 2016;

Approve the new set of co-chairs of the ADMM-plusEWGs for the third cycle from 2017 to 2020 startingafter the ADSOM-Plus in 2017 in the Philippines;

Encourage civil-military cooperation and collaborationon HADR capacity building in order to minimise orpotentially avoid loss of lives and properties;

Practise and observe international protocols such asCode for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES) andcommence work on crafting protocols of interaction tomaintain open communications, to avoidmisunderstanding and prevent undesirable incidents;

Reiterate the importance of maintaining peace,stability and security as well as upholding freedom ofnavigation in, and over-flight above, the South ChinaSea as provided for by universally recognizedprinciples of international law, including the lg\zUnited Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea(UNCLOS);

Work together to combat terrorism in all its forms andmanifestations, including through cooperation in areassuch as the sharing of information and intelligence,conducting coordinated operations where feasible, andenhancing confidence and capability buildingmechanisms;

Welcome the Philippines' chairing of ASEAN and itshosting of the 11th ADMM and +th AOMM-plus in 2012.

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Done at Vientiane, Lao People's Democratic Republic, thisTwenty Fifth Day of May in the Year Two Thousand andSixteen, in a single original copy in the English language.

For Brunei Darussalam:

PEHIN DATU SINGAMANTERI COLONEL (RTD) DATO SERI SETIA(DR) HAJI MOHAMMAD YASMIN HAJI UMAR

Minister of Energy and lndustry at the prime Minister's Office

For the Kingdom of Cambodia:

GENERAL TEA BANHDeputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense

For the Republic of lndonesia:

GENERAL (Ret.) RYAMIZARD RYACUDUMinister of Defence

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For the Lao People's Democratic Republic:

LIEUTENANT GENERAL CHANSAMONE CHANYALATHMinister of National Defence

DATO' SERI HISHAMMUDDIN TUN HUSSEINMinister of Defence

For the Rep the Union

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ffio,G'tLIEUTENA T GENERAL SEIN WIN

For the Republic of the Philippines:

of Myanmar:

a.J*"

Union Minister for Defence

OLTAIRE

For Malaysia:

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For the Republic of Singapore:

DR. NG ENG HENMinister for Defence

For the Kingdom of Thailand:

?-l-a,U+GENERAL PRAWIT WONGSUWON

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence

For the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam:

GENERAL NGO XUAN LICHMinister of National Defence

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