Asian Development Bank
He also stressed the importance of arriving at a peaceful resolution of the problem through negotiations and expressed optimism about the role that ASEAN could play as an intermediary—helping to address both humanitarian, economic and security concerns in the region. The 29th ASEAN Chiefs of Police Conference was held in Hanoi, Vietnam, on May. Among other subjects, the conference debated and adopted resolutions regarding drugs trafficking, terrorism, arms smuggling and human trafficking. Particular attention was paid to the issue of nations providing “mutual assistance” to each other to deal with these problems. On 2 April, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel joined defense ministers from the 10 Asia-Pacific countries for an unofficial meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to strengthen and “rebalance” the relationship between the United States and ASEAN. On 8 October, the Republic of the Union of Myanmar delivered a statement on behalf of ASEAN during the opening statements for the Ge...