They have come to talk about the security of the Asia-Pacific region. The Xiangshan Forum in Beijing brings military officials and experts from 59 countries and six international organizations to China. They come with their own expectations from the two-day forum.
Organizers elaborated on the theme of the forum during the welcome dinner.
“The theme for this year is ‘Build a New Type of International Relations through Security Dialogue and Cooperation’. The topics not only refer to maintaining security in the Asia-Pacific region, but also include improving global governance and deepening global anti-terrorism efforts. They are key to world security and development and are meaningful both now and in the future,” Admiral Sun Jianguo, deputy chief of Joint Staff Dept., China’s Central Military Commission, said.
General Zulkifeli from Malaysia says cooperation is needed now more than ever to fight terrorism on a global scale.
Security is a thorny issue in Asia. But the head of the Vietnamese delegation says military cooperation is needed.
“The P-L-A and militaries of the world are working together on maritime cooperation. An example of this is the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea in the western pacific. China is also working with Southeast Asian countries on maritime security. This is the best and only way ahead for the militaries of the world to address maritime security challenges,” Senior Lt. Gen. Nguyen Chi Vinh, head of Vietnamese delegation, said.
The Xiangshan forum has fewer individual attendees than last year. But it’s more inclusive, with 10 more countries participating.
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Protecting Asia-Pacific security, improving global governance and fighting terrorism are expected to top the agenda at this year’s Xiangshan Forum, which begins in Beijing on Tuesday.
Admiral Sun Jianguo, Deputy Chief of the Joint Staff Department of China’s Central Military Commission, said on Monday at a welcome banquet that despite the number of topics at the forum each year, pursuing peace and the progress of civilization have been a consistent objective of the forum.
Sun said the seventh forum, with the theme “Build a New Type of International Relations through Security Dialogue and Cooperation,” will tackle topics such as Asia-Pacific security, global governance and anti-terrorism. Over 400 people, including delegations from 59 countries, six international organizations, renowned politicians and experts attended the welcome banquet.
Zulkifeli Mohd Zin, the Defense Force chief of the Malaysian Armed Forces HQ, gave a keynote speech on Monday, where he called the rise of global terrorism, especially Daesh, also known as the Islamic State, one of the greatest challenges facing many countries, as his own country, Malaysia, was not immune from such attacks.
“Daesh’s capability to launch attacks around the world has altered the nature of international relations,” said Zulkifeli, urging closer global counter-terrorism collaboration from both official and non-official sectors.
“China has experienced its share of terrorist attacks. From its experience, China formulated one of the most comprehensive security measures for the 2008 Olympic Games, which will be used as a template for counterterrorism preparations at major global events,” said Zulkifeli, adding that China and Malaysia will deepen defense cooperation, following their first joint military drills last year.
