SFA-AGR-512-08

PERSPECTIVES ON ASEAN POLITICAL-SECURITY COMMUNITY

by Defense Undersecretary Alberto E. Valenzuela, Jr.

08 August 2008, DFA Summit Lounge

Excellencies,

The Honorable Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago,

Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Honorable Members of the House of Representatives, Distinguished guests from ASEAN member countries, Colleagues in government, Friends, Ladies and gentlemen:

Allow me first to extend to you the warm felicitations and heart-felt greetings of the Secretary of National Defense, Secretary Gilberto C. Teodoro, Jr., on this, the 41^st Founding Anniversary of Association of Southeast Asian Nations, as well as his apology for his inability to be here with you today.

From its birth in 1967, ASEAN has come a long way. Its size has doubled. From its original five (5) members, there are now ten (10) ASEAN member nations. More importantly, cooperation and dialogue among ASEAN member nations has grown and deepened significantly.

ASEAN recognizes the comprehensive nature of security and the need to address both traditional and non-traditional security challenges through a various responses ranging from the regular conduct of security dialogues to cooperative arrangements with partners within and outside the ASEAN. It views the peaceful resolution of disputes and differences as key to the attainment of stability, not only in Southeast Asia but also in the wider Asia-Pacific.

The Department of National Defense shares this vision of a secure and stable external environment. As the primary agency mandated to “guard the country against internal and external threats to national peace and security,” we at the department of national defense would like to see greater cooperation between our ASEAN neighbors, particularly in areas of common security concerns.

The ASEAN defense minister’s meeting, which was first held in Kuala Lumpur in 2006, has brought security and defense cooperation among ASEAN member nations to its highest level.

In addition, various military-to-military interactions and activities have been held among ASEAN member countries over the years, namely: the ASEAN chiefs of defense forces meetings, the ASEAN chiefs of army multilateral meetings, ASEAN navy interactions, the ASEAN air force chiefs conferences, ASEAN military intelligence meetings, and the ASEAN armies rifles meets.

These cooperative endeavors between and among the defense and armed forces establishments of the ASEAN member countries have contributed greatly to the stability of the region.

The establishment of the ASEAN regional forum or the ARF has provided a wider field for cooperation in political and security matters, as it includes, as participants, seventeen (17) countries, in addition to the ten (10) ASEAN member nations. The ARF should, however, be adapted to meet new and emerging political security challenges. Thus, we support the call for the review of the ARF to ensure the forum’s increased responsiveness to regional and global challenges, such as the emergence of non-traditional security issues, as well as to facilitate its movement from confidence-building to the next level of preventive diplomacy.

The threat of terrorism has worsened over the last few years. ASEAN provides the avenue by which regional partners can assist each other through capacity building, intelligence sharing and the exchange of best practices. The department of national defense was party of the inter-agency team which drafted the ASEAN convention on counter-terrorism signed by ASEAN leaders at the 12^th ASEAN summit in January 2007 in Cebu.  Thus, we share the desire of the department of foreign affairs for the speedy ratification of the ASEAN counter-terrorism convention.

Trans-national crimes are also of great common concern among the members of ASEAN. Piracy, the trafficking of arms and narcotics, and human smuggling have become more and more lucrative. The operations of trans-national criminal syndicates have become more sophisticated and complex. Our porous southern border has made it easier for them. Cooperation between terrorist groups and trans-national criminal syndicates operating out of Southern Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia is not unlikely.

As part of our continuing effort to address this problem, the Philippine Navy regularly holds border patrol exercises with the Malaysian Navy and the Indonesian Navy. The Philippine Navy, with the assistance of the United States and Australia, is presently in the process of establishing the coast watch south system which will consist of series of radar stations located at strategic points at or near our southern border. As envisioned, coast watch south will eventually consists of detection, interdiction, law enforcement, and prosecution capabilities. Coast watch south, in coordination with similar systems of Malaysia and Indonesia , will be an effective deterrent against trans-national crime syndicates and terrorist groups operating within our tri-border region, and will ensure safe passage of sea-going vessels through that area.

The recent natural calamities in Myanmar, China and the Philippines have emphasized the importance of greater cooperation between ASEAN and its dialogue partners in the field of humanitarian assistance and disaster response. Towards this end, and as announced by the Secretary of Foreign Affairs during the recent ARF meeting in Singapore, the Philippines will be co-hosting, with the United States, the first-ever ARF voluntary demonstration of response, a multi-national exercise aimed at ensuring better coordination among participating countries during disaster relief operations.

In conclusion, the department of national defense reiterates its commitment to the ideals of the ASEAN security community, and its continuing efforts towards greater cooperation and dialogue among the defense and military establishments of the ASEAN member nations.

Thank you and good day.

wingret