Ministers reaffirm commitment to five-country defence pact
SINGAPORE: Ministers from five countries have reaffirmed their nations' commitment to a defence agreement that has been in place for more than 50 years.
The Five Power Defence Arrangements (FDPA) was formed in 1971 against the backdrop of armed conflict across Southeast Asia, and comprises Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Singapore's Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing hosted breakfast on Saturday (May 31) for Australia's Minister for Defence Richard Marles, the UK's Minister of State Lord Vernon Coaker, New Zealand's Minister of Defence Judith Collins and Malaysia's Minister of Defence Mohamed Khaled Nordin on the sidelines of the 22nd Shangri-La Dialogue.
During the breakfast, the ministers reaffirmed their nations' commitment to the FPDA , and the importance of keeping the FPDA and its exercises relevant to "address contemporary security challenges", said Singapore's Ministry of Defence (MINDEF).
They also commended the pact's progress in implementing the guidance from the 12th FPDA Defence Ministers' Meeting (FDMM) last year, particularly in raising exercise complexity.
The 2024 edition of Exercise Bersama Lima (XBL24) was marked by the inaugural participation of fifth-generation fighter aircraft such as F-35 fighter jets from Australia and a P-8 maritime patrol aircraft from New Zealand.
"Looking ahead, the ministers look forward to the United Kingdom's Carrier Strike Group's participation in XBL25, which would be a milestone achievement for the FPDA, and reaffirm the importance of committing high-end assets to FPDA exercises to enhance their professional value," said MINDEF.
"The ministers also affirmed the continued strategic relevance of the FPDA as a constructive, transparent and peaceful defence arrangement which plays an important role in the regional security architecture."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
Jail, caning for man who extorted money from girl after she backed out of 'sugar daddy' arrangement
SINGAPORE: A man who bullied a 16-year-old girl into performing sexual acts and giving him money by falsely claiming he was taking legal action against her was sentenced to jail and caning on Monday (Jun 6). Marc Justine Landrio Chandramohan, 27, had pressured the girl after she backed out of a "sugar daddy" arrangement with him. Chandramohan will serve two years, 11 months and 10 weeks in jail from Friday after he was given a few days to settle his debts. He was also ordered to be given three strokes of the cane. The Singaporean earlier pleaded guilty to seven charges. These consist of communicating with another person for the purpose of obtaining commercial sex, abetting by distributing obscene images and videos, extortion, cheating, making obscene films, and abetting another person to perform a computer function without authority. Another nine charges, mostly related to making obscene films, were taken into consideration by Principal District Judge Victor Yeo Khee Eng for sentencing. Apart from the victim of the extortion, two other victims were filmed by Chandramohan during sex acts. All three victims cannot be named to protect their identities. Echoing what the prosecution had said in Chandramohan's earlier hearing where he pleaded guilty, Judge Yeo said in his sentencing remarks that the accused had preyed on a young and naive victim. He noted how Chandramohan had persisted with his "premeditated and predatory behaviour" to message and pressure the victim for sexual favours and money even though she owed him "absolutely nothing". Judge Yeo said the court could not ignore the adverse impact Chandramohan's acts had on the victim, who said her relationship with her family was affected by the incident. She said she felt her body was "dirty" and became sensitive to physical touch. The victim also worried about bumping into Chandramohan outside and would panic when she sees someone who resembles him. The District Judge said that the predominant sentencing consideration in this case was deterrence, both for Chandramohan and other like-minded potential offenders. Touching on Chandramohan's mitigation, Judge Yeo said he accepted that the accused regretted his offences and is prepared to accept responsibility and face punishment. THE OFFENCES The court previously heard that Chandramohan began chatting with the victim via the Instagram app in July 2021. He suggested paying her S$900 (US$700) in exchange for sexual favours in a "sugar daddy" arrangement. The victim initially agreed and sent Chandramohan four photos of herself in varying states of undress, with her face captured. She also sent a video of herself removing her school uniform, at Chandramohan's instruction. Chandramohan sent the victim S$100 on Jul 24, 2021. However, in the early hours of the next morning, the victim regretted the agreement. She told Chandramohan via text that she did not want to continue with it, deleted her chat with him and blocked him. But he began badgering her about the S$100 he gave her, creating new Instagram accounts to speak to her repeatedly, then threatened legal action against her. He insisted on sexual favours and said he would not stop pursuing legal action against her, even after the victim managed to ask a friend to transfer Chandramohan the S$100. Believing this to be true, the victim gave in and performed a sexual act in early 2022. Chandramohan agreed to withdraw his purported lawsuit against her. But he later pretended that legal proceedings were still ongoing and asked her for S$1,350 - allegedly half the sum of the legal fee - to pay his lawyer. He suggested again that the two return to their initial sexual arrangement. Eventually, the victim consulted her friends, who told her that Chandramohan was likely lying. She then lodged a police report. Separately, in 2023, Chandramohan applied for a Standard Chartered bank account at the behest of a friend, who asked him if he wanted to make fast cash by relinquishing control of his account. He provided his friend details relating to that bank account and received S$330 in exchange. A total of S$304,817.76 flowed through this bank account. Chandramohan was also sentenced over these offences and will have to pay a fine of S$330 in addition to his jail term. Extortion carries a jail term of between two and seven years with caning.
CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
Australia's Maxwell quits ODIs to focus on T20 World Cup
MELBOURNE :Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has retired from one-day internationals to focus on next year's T20 World Cup, the country's cricket board said on Monday. Maxwell took the decision to prioritise his preparation for the T20 World Cup, to be held in India and Sri Lanka, and his commitment to franchise leagues, Cricket Australia (CA) said in a statement. "I think back to right at the start I was picked ahead of my time and out of the blue. I was just proud just to be playing a couple of games for Australia. I thought I was just going to have that," the two-time World Cup winner said in the statement. "Since then, I have been able to go through the up and downs of being dropped, being brought back, playing in a few World Cups and being a part of some great teams." The 36-year-old has played 149 ODIs for Australia, scoring 3,990 runs at a strike rate of 126.7 - second only to Andre Russell's 130.22. Maxwell's 201 not out from 128 balls while battling cramps in a 2023 World Cup match against Afghanistan is considered the greatest knock in this format. Maxwell, who played the last of his seven tests in 2017, told the Final Word Podcast that the toll of 50-overs cricket, especially after a leg injury he suffered in 2022, affected his fielding ability during the Champions Trophy earlier this year. "I felt like I was letting the team down a little bit with how (the) body was reacting to the conditions," he said. "I had a good chat with (chairman of selectors) George Bailey and I asked him what his thoughts were going forward," he told the Final Word Podcast. "We talked about the 2027 World Cup and I said to him 'I don't think I am going to make that, it's time to start planning for people in my position to have a crack at it and make the position their own'." CA chief executive Todd Greenberg congratulated Maxwell for "one of the most exciting and influential one day international careers in the format's history". "Glenn's ballistic batting has lit up the cricket world and been one of the cornerstones of Australia's continued success in the 50 over game, including his heroic role in the 2023 World Cup triumph," Greenberg said.
CNA
2 hours ago
- CNA
UMNO slams Malaysia minister Tengku Zafrul's exit for Anwar's ruling PKR as ‘unethical', testing coalition ties
KUALA LUMPUR: The resignation of Malaysia's Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz from the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) to join Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) has sparked reactions from both parties, bringing ties between the two ruling coalition partners into the spotlight. Deputy Prime Minister and UMNO president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi did not mince his words over the weekend, and was quoted by local media as saying that 'it is unethical for any parties within the unity government to accept another member from an ally'. He also said UMNO should retain its quota of seven ministerial posts in the Cabinet despite Tengku Zafrul leaving the party. On his part, Anwar said on Sunday (Jun 1) that Tengku Zafrul's ministerial duties will 'remain unchanged'. 'We want him to continue his work, especially in the investment portfolio. His contributions are still needed by the country,' Anwar told local news outlet Malay Mail at the Kuala Lumpur International Book Fair. The PKR president also said that his party has not had any official discussions regarding Tengku Zafrul's application, urging the public and media to avoid 'excessive interpretations' of the minister's decision to quit UMNO on Friday. 'Yes, he has applied to join PKR but we have not deliberated on it thoroughly. For now, let it be … There's no need for excessive interpretations that might be unhealthy,' Anwar added, as quoted by Malay Mail. He also assured that Tengku Zafrul's application will be reviewed with fairness, in consultation with the party's grassroots. Tengku Zafrul's defection comes just days after two Cabinet ministers from PKR resigned from their posts. On Wednesday, Malaysia's Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli resigned from his post following his defeat in PKR leadership polls to Anwar's daughter Nurul Izzah. Hours later, Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, seen as an ally of Rafizi, followed suit. Confirming Tengku Zafrul's resignation from his party, Zahid said on Saturday that this would mean that the party's number of ministers has dropped to six, adding that it is 'only fair' for UMNO to request the ministerial seat to be returned to the party. 'To me, what's more important is that UMNO remains represented by seven full ministers in the Cabinet. Although we are unsure whether Tengku Zafrul's appointment was on UMNO's ticket, we had assumed he represented the party,' Zahid was quoted as saying by Malay Mail at an event in Sarawak. Zahid said that although Tengku Zafrul had claimed to be an UMNO member since 1997, he had never mentioned that he was representing UMNO when he was appointed to the Cabinet in 2023, The Star reported. With Tengku Zafrul's exit from UMNO, the party is now left with six Cabinet members, namely Zahid himself, Mohamad Hasan, Johari Ghani, Khaled Nordin, Zambry Abdul Kadir and Azalina Othman Said. Each party in Anwar's unity government has a set number of ministerial posts allocated, based loosely on their number of seats in the legislative assembly. PKR has eight ministerial posts. Zahid also said that his party's legal team will review whether Tengku Zafrul has breached the agreement signed during the 15th General Election in 2022 which binds candidates to the party. He highlighted that party candidates who leave may face a RM100 million (US$23.5 million) fine based on their sworn statements, Free Malaysia Today reported. In August last year, local media had reported Zahid as saying that all UMNO elected representatives who quit to join another party must pay a RM100 million bond which they had agreed upon when becoming Barisan Nasional (BN) candidates. This would apply to every BN assemblymen or member of parliament, the New Straits Times reported then. UMNO is the lynchpin party of the BN coalition. 'Tengku Zafrul contested and lost but was reappointed as a senator, so I will need to check with UMNO legal advisors first,' he said. Zahid also said that he had held discussions with Tengku Zafrul in Parliament three months ago and Tengku Zafrul had not raised the issue of leaving his party, The Star reported. In December last year, Anwar admitted that Tengku Zafrul was in preliminary talks with his party, despite UMNO saying it would not allow any such move. In a Facebook post on Friday night, Tengku Zafrul said he had tendered his resignation as an UMNO supreme council member, a Kota Raja division chief and a party member. He had quit his position as Selangor UMNO treasurer in April last year, sparking speculations that he would leave and join PKR, The Star reported. WHAT'S NEXT FOR TENGKU ZAFRUL? Meanwhile, Selangor Chief Minister Amirudin Shari has dismissed speculation that Tengku Zafrul and himself will be switching roles following the minister's decision to join PKR. Amirudin, who is the PKR vice-president, said that talks of Tengku Zafrul possibly taking over his position as Chief Minister was far-fetched due to complexity of the processes involved within a short period. 'In my view, it's rather long and complicated. I don't think that Tengku Zafrul vying for the Menteri Besar (Chief Minister) post is feasible because it would require a by-election,' he said on Saturday, reported The Star. 'We only have about two-and-a-half years left in this term, so there's not much that can be re-organised within that time frame. We'll have to wait and see how things develop,' Amirudin, who is also the Selangor PKR chief, added. Amirudin also said that Tengku Zafrul's potential move to PKR would further strengthen the party's credibility, expressing confidence that they could work well together, New Straits Times reported. In his statement on Friday, Tengku Zafrul said the decision to leave UMNO was made after considering various factors, especially 'compatibility and conformity factors'. The minister added that he took a long time to consider his decision, as UMNO was the only political party he had joined since 1997. PKR's secretary-general Fuziah Salleh said that the party will take into account various perspectives, including the views of its partners in the unity government, when processing membership applications from individuals wishing to join the party.
