Asia-Pacific armies meet to fight common enemies -
bdnews24.com
Asia-Pacific armies meet to fight common enemies
Senior Correspondent, bdnews24.com
Published: 2014-09-14 15:15:47.0 BdST Updated: 2014-09-14 21:04:21.0 BdST
Photo: asaduzzaman pramanik/ bdnews24.com
Bangladesh army and the US Army Pacific have called upon the Asia-Pacific regional countries’ land forces to work together to fight off common threats ranging from international terrorism to climate change.
Generals of the two forces gave the call on Sunday while inaugurating the 38th episode of the Asia-Pacific armies’ seminar that brought land forces of 32 countries including the US, China, Japan, India, and Indonesia together in Dhaka.
Bangladesh is co-hosting the seminar after 22 years.
“We are now facing the kind of threats that transcend the geographical borders,” Chief of Army Staff General Iqbal Karim Bhuiyan said as he found “non-traditional security threats” were “gaining momentum” in the security discourse.
Photo: asaduzzaman pramanik/ bdnews24.com
Photo: asaduzzaman pramanik/ bdnews24.com
“And of course, no single nation has the unique capacity to deal with all these threats,” he said.
“When threats operate across the border on a global scale, it becomes pointless to restrict our efforts within our own individual national means.
“There comes the need for cooperation among the nations,” the Chief of army staff said.
Commanding General of the US Army Pacific Vincent Brooks identified four common threats that confront the countries and said: “We should work together to address common threats that confront us.”
International terrorism and violent extremism, cyber-crime, infectious diseases, and environmental changes that he said threaten the safety of human populations are the common fear of the region.
The seminar, which is themed on “A new focus on the Asia-Pacific region: Opportunities and challenges for land forces” is the brainchild of the US Army Pacific.
Academics, foreign policy analysts, senior diplomats, and military experts of the region will make their presentations in the four-day seminar that includes small group discussions, cultural and networking activities.
Four issues will be discussed.
Topic -1: Balancing requirements for meeting tradition and non-traditional threats
Topic -2: Building response capacity of land forces for issues of environmental security
Topic-3: Developing cooperation and interoperability concepts for non-traditional security
Topic-4: Civil-military and multinational co-operation, the essential elements for future stability
One of the plenary sessions will be held on the vessel of the Bangladesh army ‘LCT Sakti Shanchar’.
The Asia-Pacific region that stretches from the Indian subcontinent to the western shores of the Americas has become an epicentre of global politics.
It covers two oceans – the Pacific and the Indian Oceans – which are being increasingly linked for shipping and strategy.
It is also home to almost half the world’s population and emerging powers like China and India.
Photo: asaduzzaman pramanik/ bdnews24.com
The US Army Pacific began this seminar only with nine countries at Honolulu, Hawaii, in 1978, and since then it is being organised in different parts of the world.
It is a multinational military seminar that offers a forum for officers from lieutenant colonels to lieutenant generals in land armies of Asia-Pacific to exchange views and ideas.
The US is currently seeking to “rebalance” its Asia strategy.
Secretary of State John Kerry recently said America's “security and prosperity are closely and increasingly linked to the Asia Pacific”.
Japan, an ally of the US, has adopted a plan to combine the Pacific and Indian Oceans for expanding its economic outreach and strategic space.
The emerging power, China, is pursuing its own vision of silk-road route and maritime silk route connecting the entire region.
One of the long-term objectives of the seminar is “to support the Army’s efforts in rebalancing the Asia-Pacific theatre”, the US embassy in Dhaka had said earlier.
“Each of our nations has a stake in the security and stability of the Asia-Pacific and should welcome closer partnerships that enable us to achieve enduring outcomes,” Commanding General Brooks said in his inaugural speech.
Photo: asaduzzaman pramanik/ bdnews24.com
He said interactions beyond the structured seminar presentations would provide “a tremendous opportunity to exchange ideas even further”.
He urged the participating armies to take the opportunity “to get to know each other better both on professional and personal levels”.
A special programme will be organised for the accompanying spouses to make the event rewarding for them.
Professor of International Relations at Dhaka University Imtiaz Ahmed, who presented the keynote paper at the opening plenary told bdnews24.com that this platform would help “to diffuse tensions if any country has with another”.
Photo: asaduzzaman pramanik/ bdnews24.com
“This type of seminar gives a chance to know each other and build confidence,” he said, citing differences among counties like the US, China, Japan and India.
Professor of the Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies in Honolulu, Hawaii, Christopher J Snedden, also found the seminar to be a platform for “doing things together”.
He told bdnews24.com that it would help them to better understand the issues and find ways to fit those issues together in the globalised world.
He said the seminar would help them “to become more cooperative in to do things in co-operation that might be bilaterally and multilaterally”.
