Ministers from 10 Southeast Asian nations said Thursday they were ready to work together to create a regional defense industry, including sharing cutting edge technology and possibly jointly developing missiles, according to AP. By working together, Malaysian Defense Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said, they could potentially reduce imports by half. Indonesian Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro wrapped up a two-day meeting in the capital, Jakarta, saying the member countries together spend $25 billion a year on military hardware and weapons systems, much of which is purchased from the West. Other key suppliers are China, Russia and South Korea. Ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, also discussed terrorism, maritime security and human trafficking at their annual gathering. «We see a real need to promote peace and stability in the South China Sea,» Yusgiantoro said, noting that two-thirds of the region is water and so what happens there is key to economic development. The ministers also agreed in principle to set up a regional Peacekeeping Center so that member countries could benefit from shared planning, training, and learn from one another's experiences. The hope is that they could one day help settle disputes in places like Cambodia and Thailand _ where bloody border skirmishes have left nearly 20 dead _ and in the insurgency-wracked southern Philippines. The centerpiece of the meeting, however, was a concept paper presented by Malaysia on the need to work together to create a regional defense industry. Easily approved, it calls for the joint development of missiles and other high-tech weapons system. ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
