KUALA LUMPUR: Indonesia and Philippines officially announced on Monday a security deal for a joint working group aimed to aid in combating trans-border issues, the Philippines armed forces said. The Philippines military Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Jessie Dellosa said the two sides had finalized the Philippine-Indonesia working group with his Indonesian counterpart, Admiral Agus Suhartono, during a bilateral meeting in Jakarta last Thursday. Dellosa was a resource speaker and panelist at the forum attended by some 50 defense officials and military chiefs mostly from the Asia Pacific as well as other international security officials. The Philippine-Indonesia working group will “facilitate interoperability in addressing trans-border issues, including terrorism and other criminal activities,” the Philippines military said in a statement. The terms of reference will “further strengthen the cooperation between the two countries' security forces on matters of border security, intelligence, training, education and other mutually agreed initiatives and activities.” The signing of the deal is expected to take place in Mindanao next month. The Philippines and Indonesia both face threats from Islamic extremists, with the Indonesia-based international terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) extending its network through the local Abu Sayyaf terror group. The two regional allies are also confronted with trans-border crimes such as smuggling, human and drug trafficking, and poaching. “Even as we each confront domestic security challenges, the interests of our nations are interrelated and we are all stakeholders of collective security in the international community,” Dellosa said in a statement. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/vwG6S Tags: Agreement, Indonesia, Military, Philippines, Security Section: East Asia, Latest News, Southeast Asia
