India & ASEAN members brainstorm strategies to tackle the evolving threat of terrorism and extremism
| 2025-03-21
The ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) Experts Working Group on Counter-Terrorism (EWG on CT) was held in New Delhi on March 19-20, 2025.
The ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) serves as a platform for practical cooperation amongst the participating countries’ defence establishments
The 14th meeting of ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) Experts Working Group on Counter-Terrorism (EWG on CT) held in New Delhi during the week saw extensive discussions on a comprehensive strategy to tackle the evolving threat of terrorism and extremism.
The EWG meeting held on March 19-20, 2025, was aimed to share the on-ground experience of the Defence Forces of ASEAN countries and its dialogue partners. The meeting laid a foundation for the activities/exercises/meetings/ workshops planned for the current cycle, the Ministry of Defence said on Friday (March 21, 2025).
Co-chairs India and Malaysia unveiled the work plan for the activities planned for the cycle 2024-2027. This includes the conduct of Table-Top Exercise for EWG on CT in Malaysia in 2026 and Field Training Exercise in India in 2027.
Earlier, Myanmar and Russia, co-chairs for EWG on CT during the previous cycle for 2021-2024, handed over the co-chairmanship to India and Malaysia for the present cycle (2024-2027). India is hosting the maiden EWG meeting for the current cycle.
In his keynote address, India’s Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh stated that terrorism remains a dynamic and evolving challenge with threats increasingly transcending borders.
He termed India’s relationship with ASEAN as a key pillar of its foreign policy, which is at the heart of Act East Policy. The Defence Secretary reiterated India’s strong support to a stable and unified ASEAN which serves as an institutional anchor of an important region.
Delegations from 10 ASEAN members - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Vietnam, Singapore and Thailand - and eight dialogue partners - Australia, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Japan, China, USA and Russia in addition to hosts India - along with Timor Leste and the ASEAN Secretariat participated in the meeting.
The ADMM-Plus serves as a platform for practical cooperation amongst the participating countries’ defence establishments. It currently focuses on seven areas of practical cooperation:
- Counter-Terrorism
- Maritime Security
- Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Management Peacekeeping Operations
- Military Medicine
- Humanitarian Mine Action
- Cyber Security
EWGs have been established to facilitate cooperation in these areas. The EWGs are each co-chaired by one ASEAN member state and one dialogue partner following a three-year cycle.
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