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The ministers were also expected to endorse a proposal by the Philippines and the United States to conduct a disaster relief exercise with ASEAN and its partners. -- PHOTO: AFP
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ASIA-PACIFIC powers opened key security talks on Thursday focusing on coordinated civilian-military relief operations during disasters after tens of thousands of people died in the Myanmar cyclone and China earthquake in May.
While countries like the United States, Singapore, the Philippines and Australia would be keen on the idea, it is unlikely to go down well with isolationist and authoritarian regimes like North Korea and Myanmar - which spurned international help initially after being hit by devastating Cyclone Nargis on May 2.
Still, the topic will dominate the daylong talks of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and its 16 partners in the annual conference known as the ASEAN Regional Forum, said Singapore spokesman Andrew Tan.
Ministers 'called for greater civil military coordination for major, multinational disaster responses through training, information sharing and multinational exercises,' a draft statement to be issued after the talks said.
'They recognised that military assets and personnel, in full support and not in place of civilian responses, have played an increasingly important role in regional disaster responses,' said the statement obtained by The Associated Press.
The ministers were also expected to endorse a proposal by the Philippines and the United States to conduct a disaster relief exercise with ASEAN and its partners.
The idea of civilian-military cooperation in disaster relief is not new. Jolted by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the forum's 2006 meeting pledged to draw up procedures for cooperation in times of disasters. Creating an inventory of military transport available in the region was also promoted.
Thursday's meeting will take stock of the progress made with delegates acutely aware of the consequences of a slow response after Cyclone Nargis, which killed more than 84,000 people and left about 53,000 missing.
Also in May, China's Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces were jolted by a 7.9 magnitude earthquake that killed 70,000 people and left 18,000 missing.
China deployed 130,000 troops, who by this month had repaired more than 9,196 miles (14,800 kilometers) of roads, installed 220,000 shelters and relocated more than 1.4 million people, according to the government.
The importance of military operations in disaster relief was made clear after the 2004 tsunami, when the US rushed troops, ships, aid and helicopters to Indonesia, the country hardest hit with more than 160,000 killed in Aceh province.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is attending the conference, slammed Myanmar for refusing international help at first when several countries including the United States were 'sitting literally offshore' with ships loaded with aid.
'When you have a situation (with) the junta refusing to let people in need be helped, you wonder how can the international community stand by and allow that to happen,' she said.
Dr Rice praised ASEAN for forcing Myanmar's doors to open to aid.
'That was a useful role, but it should never have happened in the first place,' she said. -- AP
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