U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will meet counterparts from the Asia-Pacific in Singapore for three days from June 2 to discuss the security challenges facing the region, organizers said.
The Shangri-La Dialogue, held annually since 2002 in the city-state, will open with a keynote address from Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) said.
Rumsfeld will also deliver an address to delegates as will India’s Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Japanese Minister of State for Defense Fukushiro Nukaga and Indonesian Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono, the IISS said.
Other countries expected to send official delegations to the gathering include Australia, Britain, China, Malaysia, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Russia, South Korea, Thailand, and host Singapore, it said.
”This summit will feature several opportunities to advance Asia-Pacific defense diplomacy,” the IISS said in a statement.
A skeletal agenda available on the IISS website said delegates would touch on the role of China and India as key players in the region, the U.S.-Asia security architecture as well as maritime security cooperation.
Bilateral meetings between defense ministers will also be held on the sidelines of the gathering, the IISS said.
The Shangri-La Dialogue is regarded an important gathering to discuss security issues facing the region and is seen as a complement to the ASEAN Regional Forum, an annual meeting of foreign ministers from Asia, the United States, China, Russia and Japan, among others.
