Therefore, it is my belief that today more than ever, it is very important for us to put a united front, building a coalition and a movement of moderates, a host of like-minded nations, to be the voice of reason to counter terrorism and extremism - a principle which have guided Malaysia’s recent overtures in foreign policy. With like-minded friends on board, burden is shared and courage is multiplied, and this will lead us to the light at the end of the tunnel, InsyaAllah. There is no denying that there is evil in this world but the light will always conquer the darkness.
My second point looking forward is that nations must also commit even more strongly than before to regional cooperation and processes. But instead of looking beyond ASEAN, the foundations of wider security cooperation can be laid via smaller building blocks, such as sub-regional cooperation initiatives. The key is to adopt a gradualist approach: we should seek to build many small bridges, rather than one large highway. For instance, Bapak Ryamizard from Indonesia, Secretary Delfin from the Philippines and I are working towards a trilateral partnership that will provide greater security in the Sulu Straits via joint patrols.
This year will mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of ASEAN. While we still have a long way to go in perfecting regional integration, I still believe that the pillars of mutual respect, non-interference and inclusiveness is a model for successful regional partnerships moving forward. It is now, more than ever, we need to show the world which is full of hate and divide, full of tears and suffering, that the ASEAN Way - which is far more than just leaders holding hands in photos - does work. Certainly, no other model, despite the inherent difficulties, could work in a region as diverse as Southeast Asia. We must be proud of our achievements, we have gotten this far – being tested on DAESH, the South China Sea and North Korea but most importantly – we as the ASEAN States must believe it ourselves. We in ASEAN must rise to the occasion and take leadership. All difficulties can eventually be surmounted so long as mutual trust, respect and transparency remains. Still, it is always better to be a do-er than just a talker, even in regional affairs.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The third solution I am proposing today is that greater confidence and trust can be built through initiatives such as military diplomacy and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR). I have often felt that it is vital to connect our serving men and women together, not only to discuss the profession of arms but to also to work together to assist the vulnerable. The increasing incidences of natural disaster, brought on by our callous neglect of the environment, makes such HADR initiatives all the more necessary.
For instance, I have mentioned countless times before with regards to the successes of the ADMM Plus platform in addressing HADR, amongst other various areas of security concern. In addition, our ASEAN Military Ready Group (AMRG) established under the ADMM mechanism is another platform that can be explored in forging a practical form of cooperation in HADR. These measures will no doubt help to facilitate integration in our region regardless of the wider global scenario. But we don’t need to look very far beyond ASEAN - widespread flooding and devastating mudslides in Sri Lanka have killed at least 200 people and displaced more than half a million. Helping just one person in Sri Lanka may not mean anything to the world, but for that one person, it will mean the world.
Fourth, the challenges posed by the cyber-sphere means that this must now be regarded as another theatre of defence for our countries. We should not only seek to defend our people on land, air and sea, but also the internet. A few countries along with terrorist organisations of all hues are wreaking havoc across the world, displaying their cyber prowess at crippling infrastructure — political and financial — of countries without deploying conventional violent means. This means that tomorrow’s warrior will be a very different one from today’s. The soldier, sailor and airman of the future must not only be a shooter but also a coder and hacker. Wars will no longer be won with just bullets and missiles, but also algorithms. Therefore, nations must cooperate to not only crackdown on cybercriminals but to ensure the security of both regional and global cyber-infrastructure.
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