ASEAN Defence Ministers Emphasise Importance of Free and Open Flows Amidst Disruption

Minister for Defence, Mr Chan Chun Sing and the Philippines' Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro Jr. co-hosted breakfast this morning for their ASEAN counterparts who are attending the 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue. In attendance were Brunei's Minister at the Prime Minister's Office and Minister of Defence II Pehin Datu Lailaraja Major General (Retired) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Awang Halbi Bin Haji Mohd Yussof; Cambodia's Secretary of State at the Ministry of National Defence Lieutenant General Rath Dararoth; Indonesia's Vice Minister of Defense Air Marshal (Retd) Donny Ermawan Taufanto; Malaysia's Minister of Defence Dato' Seri Mohamed Khaled Bin Nordin; Thailand's Minister of Defence Lieutenant General (Ret) Adul Boonthamcharoen; and Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence General Phan Van Giang.

During the breakfast, the Ministers reaffirmed the importance of ASEAN Centrality and how ASEAN can contribute to regional peace and prosperity. The Ministers affirmed the value of the Shangri-La Dialogue in enabling ASEAN Member States to engage defence and security officials from around the world.

The Ministers also exchanged views on how militaries from ASEAN and ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting Plus (ADMM-Plus) countries can train and exercise together, particularly in response to humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. This includes through ADMM-Plus exercises such as Exercise TRIDENT RESOLVE that Indonesia will host in September 2026, and information-sharing through resources such as the Republic of Singapore Navy's Information Fusion Centre. The Ministers agreed to redouble efforts to cooperate through the ADMM and the ADMM-Plus.

The Ministers reaffirmed the importance of international law and norms in the region, particularly the right of transit passage under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and underscored their commitment to keep international airways and waterways open and safe for the free flow of trade and supplies, including the Straits of Malacca and Singapore.