The nation put forward the suggestion of establishing an ASEAN Military Intelligence Community (AMIC) during the 17th ASEAN Military Intelligence Meeting (AMIM) which was held via a video conference on September 22.

At the meeting. (Photo: qdnd.vn)

Director of the Ministry of Defence’s General Department of Military Intelligence Lt. Gen. Pham Ngoc Hung, who is also serving as AMIM Chairman, said the AMIC will help to intensify exchanges and co-operation among various military intelligence organisations in ASEAN in a more practical and efficient manner.

Lt. Gen. Hung added that the AMIC will serve as an adviser for various Governments and defence ministries in order to handle security challenges, while also supporting the building of the ASEAN Community.

 He went on to outline a variety of  issues in the region during his speech at the session, including the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, water security in the Mekong Delta river, and the ongoing geopolitical situation in the East Sea.

Furthermore, the event offered a platform for the heads of military intelligence organisations to sharpen their focus on regional security, whilst also outlining co-operation solutions in response to these challenges.

 Moreover, participants also looked into the details of an AMIC inception document, in addition to finalising the draft joint statement of the 17th ASEAN Chiefs of Defence Forces’ Meeting (ACDFM-17), which will be submitted to the ACDFM-17 for approval.

At the conclusion of the meeting, Lt. Gen. Hung handed over the AMIM chairmanship to representatives from the Brunei army.