Reuters-US China Southeast Asia defence officials meet amid crises
November 16, 2023 2 min 348 words
这次美中东盟国防官员会议在危机时刻举行，凸显了地区内外的地缘政治紧张局势。印尼国防部长普拉博沃强调全球广泛开放和包容性的合作，但未具体提及问题。东盟国防部长呼吁加强全球协作，关切加沙和缅甸冲突。印尼总统在华盛顿访问期间敦促拜登在以色列与哈马斯的冲突中发挥更大作用。美中领导人同日会面，同意恢复军事对话，并合作遏制芬太尼生产。此次会议凸显了地区紧张局势，需要全球努力共同解决。
Defence ministers and officials from the United States, China, Russia and Southeast Asia gathered in Indonesia on Thursday for a meeting where they are expected to discuss geopolitical crises in and outside the region.
Defence ministers in Southeast Asia's regional bloc ASEAN called on Wednesday for a ceasefire in Gaza and a durable solution in Myanmar, as conflicts are deepening there.
"Indonesia is of the view that the region's multiple security issues, ranging from traditional and non-traditional threats, can only be solved by extensive open and inclusive global collaboration," Prabowo Subianto, Indonesia's defence minister said in an opening speech on Thursday.
Prabowo did not mention any specific issues in the speech, but he named on Wednesday the South China Sea, the Korean Peninsula and Myanmar as "hot spots that can destabilise the region."
Among those attending are U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Russia's Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin and Jing Jianfeng, China's deputy chief of staff of the Joint Staff Department of the Central Military Commission.
Other countries participating on Thursday are Australia, New Zealand and others, while Myanmar is absent.
Myanmar's generals have been barred from high-level meetings of the 10-member ASEAN since they seized power in a 2021 coup and unleashed violence on those who challenged their takeover.
The meeting comes as U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met on Wednesday on the outskirts of San Francisco, where they agreed to resume military-to-military communications and work to curb fentanyl production.
Indonesia and Malaysia have also called for a ceasefire in the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Visiting Washington this week, Indonesian President Joko Widodo pressed Biden to do more to end Israel's war with Hamas.