India to co-chair key international counter-terrorism meet for first time

India is set to play a pivotal role in an upcoming international counter-terrorism meeting, marking a significant milestone in its efforts to combat terrorism globally. 

The meeting, which will take place from March 19-20 in New Delhi, is the 14th session of the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) Expert Working Group (EWG) on Counter-Terrorism.

For the first time, India will co-chair the EWG alongside Malaysia. This is a momentous development as it highlights India's growing influence and leadership in global counter-terrorism initiatives.

Delegates from the 10 ASEAN member nations, including Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Vietnam, Singapore, and Thailand, will be attending the meeting. Additionally, eight dialogue partners – Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Japan, China, the United States, Russia, and Timor-Leste – will also participate, along with members from the ASEAN Secretariat.

The meeting will focus on the evolving threats posed by terrorism and extremism, with the primary goal being the formulation of a robust and comprehensive strategy to tackle these issues. India's Defence Secretary, Rajesh Kumar Singh, will deliver the keynote address at the opening ceremony on March 19.

The discussions will centre on sharing experiences from ASEAN and its dialogue partners' defence forces to devise a strong counter-terrorism framework for the current cycle (2024-2027).

This session marks the first of many during the current three-year cycle and will lay the foundation for planned activities, exercises, seminars, and workshops aimed at enhancing cooperation in counter-terrorism efforts.

As part of the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting-Plus framework, the EWG acts as a platform for practical collaboration among defence institutions.

The ADMM-Plus focuses on seven critical areas of cooperation: counter-terrorism, maritime security, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, peacekeeping operations, military medicine, and cyber security. Expert Working Groups are established for each of these areas, with co-chairs from both ASEAN member countries and dialogue partners working on strategic goals and guiding policies for each cycle.

The groups convene regularly, holding at least two meetings annually, and also organise various practical exercises, such as tabletop drills and field training, to evaluate progress in fostering collaboration.

The EWGs are each co-chaired by one ASEAN member state and one dialogue partner, following a three-year cycle. The task of the co-chairs is to lay down the objectives, policy guidelines and directions for the EWG for the three-year cycle at the commencement of the chairmanship, conduct of regular EWG meetings (minimum two in a year) and an exercise of any form for all member nations in the third year to test the progress made in practical cooperation during the three-year cycle.