Defense Ministers from the Asia-Pacific region will meet in Singapore early next month for their annual consultations, reports here said on Wednesday.
The gathering, known as the IISS Asia Security Summit or the Shangri-La Dialogue, will see plenary sessions held for ministers and national security advisers to clarify their government policies, Malaysia's national news agency Bernama said.
An expert group on policies and assumptions is also expected to make presentations during the informal meeting slated for June 2-4, Bernama quoted the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) as saying.
Other activities, involving senior officials during the meeting, will provide an opportunity for professional discussions to analyze deeper strategic issues and better policy aims and cultivate the sense of a defense and security community, Bernama said.
Issues to be addressed at the plenary sessions of this year's dialogue include Deploying Forces for International Security; Setting National Security Priorities; and Constructing a Regional Security Community.
Advancing Maritime Security Cooperation; The Challenges of Force Modernization; and Counter-Insurgency in the 21st Century, are also to be discussed during the meeting, Bernama said.
Delegates from more than 24 countries, including Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, Canada, France, India, Japan, Mongolia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Republic of Korea, Timor Leste, the United Kingdom, and the United States, will attend the meeting.
ASEAN Defense Ministers held their first meeting here on Tuesday, agreeing to promote regional peace and stability through dialogue and cooperation in defense and security. But Myanmar was not represented at the meeting.
The ministers issued a joint statement at their one-day meeting, also agreeing to contribute to the establishment of an ASEAN Security Committee (ASC).
