Jakarta, (Antara) - Indonesian, Malaysian, and Philippine defense ministers met in Manila on Monday to discuss the implementation of coordinated patrols on the shared maritime territories susceptible to piracy and other transnational crimes, the Indonesian Defense Ministry stated.
The trilateral meeting between Indonesian Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu and his Malaysian and Philippines counterparts, Dato' Hishamuddin and Gazmin T.Voltaire was conducted as a follow-up to their first discussion held on the sidelines of the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting in May, according to a press statement made available to Antara here on Tuesday.
Among the matters discussed during the Manila meeting were the implementation of coordinated patrols through accelerating the signing of a framework on arrangements, information and intelligence sharing, planned joint naval exercises, and the formation of a joint military command post.
At the meeting, Minister Ryacudu echoed Indonesia's steady commitment to contributing to peace and development in the Southeast Asian region and underlined the importance of implementing coordinated patrols.
"I believe that our common commitment will make our defense cooperation stronger for promoting and preserving stability and peace in the region," he added.
In March and April 2016, the Philippine-based Abu Sayyaf militant group had held 14 Indonesian sailors captive after hijacking their vessels. However, they have all been released. The same group also captured several Malaysian sailors.(*)
