PHNOM PENH : Prime Minister Hun Sen used the opening of the 9th Asean Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM+) - which includes the world’s two superpowers China and the US - to urge open, frank and inclusive dialogue and communication by all participants.

He asked participating nations to strengthen their security and defence cooperation based on people-centred principles of trust, noting that Asean has put security and the wellbeing of its people at the centre of its security policies.

“In order to achieve harmonised security in the region, we need to promote cooperative security. Due to the rising complexity and multi-dimensionality of transboundary security issues and threats, we must collaborate closely to address these challenges,” he said at the Nov 23 opening of the ADMM+ in Siem Reap province.

He said the Covid-19 pandemic was a wake-up call for all nations to pay more attention to health security. Climate security is another pressing issue that governments need to inject more effort and resources into, while civil-military cooperation on security is also becoming increasingly crucial, he added.

The meeting was attended by Chinese Minister of Defence General Wei Fenghe and US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin. Hun Sen also urged the ADMM+ leaders to work together to address traditional and non-traditional security challenges.

 - ANN