Bangkok, 26th May 2014 – With this year’s theme “”ASEAN Underway: Navies After 2015””, the staff workshop of the 8th ASEAN Navy Chiefs Meeting (8th ANCM) commenced on 26th June 2014 in Bangkok, Thailand.The workshop was chaired by Captain Cherngchai Chomcherngpat, Deputy Director General of the Royal Thai Navy. Representatives from each of the member countries attended the workshop to discuss the initiatives brought forward by each navy.
Some of the initiatives discussed include the draft ASEAN Navies Roadmap which aims to align the ASEAN Navies to sail towards the same purpose and objectives. Another initiative is the ASEAN Navies Common Protocol in HADR Operations still in its drafting state aims to ease the process of supporting the country in the needs of Human Assistance and Disaster Relief within the region.
With the main objective of these initiatives to support the ASEAN Integration 2015, Political-Security Community Pillar, the positive discussion and outcomes during the staff workshop will be forwarded to the 8th ASEAN Navy Chief Meeting for approval, this coming August. Representing the Royal Brunei Navy (RBN) to the staff workshop were Lieutenant Colonel (L) Rahaimi bin Haji Abdul Karim, Chief of Staff RBN and Lieutenant (L) Wan Abdul Naafi bin Metussin, Staff Officer Naval Research Cell RBN.
