Rajnath Singh to attend 12th ASEAN Defence Ministers meeting in Kuala Lumpur

New Delhi [India], October 29 (ANI): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will attend the 12th ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting - Plus (ADMM-Plus) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on November 01, 2025 (Saturday), the Ministry of Defence said on Wednesday.
On the sidelines, the second edition of ASEAN-India Defence Ministers' Informal Meeting, under the chairmanship of Malaysia, will be held on October 31, wherein Defence Ministers from all ASEAN member countries will take part. The meeting aims to further strengthen defence and security cooperation among ASEAN member states & India and advance the 'Act East Policy'.
During the two-day visit, the defence minister is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from the participating ADMM-Plus nations as well as the senior leadership from Malaysia.
ADMM is the highest defence consultative and cooperative mechanism in ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations). ADMM-Plus is a platform for ASEAN member states (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste and Vietnam) and its eight Dialogue Partners (India, US, China, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand) to strengthen security and defence cooperation.
India became the dialogue partner of ASEAN in 1992 and the inaugural ADMM-Plus was convened in Hanoi, Vietnam on October 12, 2010. Since 2017, ADMM-Plus is held annually to bolster the defence cooperation among ASEAN and plus countries, the statement said.
Under the construct of ADMM-Plus, India is the co-chair of Experts Working Group on Counter Terrorism with Malaysia for the cycle 2024-2027. The second edition of ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise is also scheduled in 2026.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also addressed the ASEAN-India summit virtually, reaffirming collaboration in counter-terrorism, early review of the ASEAN-India FTA, maritime security, among others.
The Prime Minister and ASEAN leaders jointly reviewed progress in ASEAN-India relations and discussed initiatives to strengthen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. This was the Prime Minister's 12th participation in the India-ASEAN Summit.
In support of the Malaysian Chair's theme of "Inclusivity and Sustainability", PM Modi announced extended support for the implementation of the ASEAN-India Plan of Action to implement the ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (2026-2030) and the adoption of the ASEAN-India Joint Leaders' Statement on Sustainable Tourism to strengthen tourism cooperation, as we celebrate the ASEAN-India Year of Tourism.
Earlier on October 27, while was on a visit to Kuala Lumpur, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar reaffirmed India's full commitment to ensure a peaceful, progressive and prosperous future for the region and furthering maritime cooperation.
Jaishankar, in his address at the East Asian Summit on Monday, said that "India values EAS' contribution to peace, progress and prosperity" and looked forward to the positive outcomes of the Summit. (ANI)