MUARA, Wednesday 4 May 2016 – His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, the Minister of Defence and the Supreme Commander of the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) consented to grace the on-going ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus Maritime Security and Counter Terrorism Exercise (ADMM-Plus MS & CT Exercise).
His Majesty’s tour started with a visit to the Multi National Coordination Centre (MNCC), whereby His Majesty was welcomed by the Minister of Energy and Industry at the Prime Minister’s Office, Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Singamanteri Colonel (Rtd) Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Awang Haji Mohammad Yasmin bin Haji Umar; the Deputy Minister of Defence, First Admiral (Rtd) Dato Seri Pahlawan Abdul Aziz bin Haji Mohd Tamit; and the Commander of RBAF, Yang Dimuliakan Pehin Datu Pekerma Jaya Major General Dato Paduka Seri Mohd Tawih bin Abdullah.
At the MNCC, His Majesty was introduced to the ASEAN Defence Senior Officials’ Meeting (ADSOM)-Plus Leaders and Representatives. After receiving the exercise brief, His Majesty toured the Maritime Security Task Force Headquarters and Exercise Control Centre at MNCC, which offered insight into the multinational set-up, emphasising the importance of force integration prior to operating at sea.
His Majesty’s tour at the Muara Naval Base also included visits to two naval vessels. The first was Brunei Darussalam’s KDB DARUTTAQWA, where His Majesty witnessed a ship assault involving the Special Forces of the ADMM-Plus countries. His Majesty then boarded Japan Maritime Self Defence Force’s ship JDS Ise, a Hyuga-class helicopter destroyer, anchored off Brunei waters.
The two-week exercise held from 02 May to 12 May 2016 commenced with the sail of participating ships from Brunei Darussalam to conduct exercises en route to Singapore, where it will conclude with a counter-terrorism scenario.
The overall objective of the exercise is to enhance the depth and quality of military cooperation and interoperability among the ADMM-Plus nations, which are crucial elements in generating effective responses to address transnational security issues, especially in the realms of maritime security and counter-terrorism.
The ADMM-Plus MS & CT Exercise this year is co-hosted by the RBAF and the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) involving 18 countries; the ten ASEAN countries, joined by the eight ASEAN Dialogue Partners which are Australia, China, Japan, India, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Russia, and the United States. It involves over 3,000 personnel, 17 ships, 15 helicopters, two maritime patrol aircraft, as well as the Special Forces of participating nations.
