Multi-lateral cooperation keep strong as regional terrorism persists.
As the war in Ukraine rolls into its third year, strategic competition across the vast maritime expanses and land masses of Asia-Pacific also presses ahead as state actors strive for military advantage.
These contemporary threats are clear to see and were identified in a Congressional Research Service report on the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM), published on 5 March, which highlighted a variety of strategically competitive threats across the region.
According to the CRS report, threats include the possible invasion of Taiwan by the People’s Republic of China (PRC); ongoing tensions across the Korean Peninsula; as well as sovereignty issues and claims in the South and East China Seas.
As the CRS report outlined: “Since the early 2010s, [the US Department of Defense] has increasingly come to identify competition with the PRC as the organising principle of Indo-Pacific posture.
“As part of this strategic shift, the U.S. military has increased the number of personnel stationed in the region, secured access to new bases (especially in Australia and the Philippines), and developed new operational concepts that emphasise wider and more diversified combat and logistical operations [in the form of] the Army’s Multi-Domain Operations, the Air Force’s Agile Combat Employment, the Navy’s Distributed Maritime Operations, and the Marine Corps’ Expeditionary Advanced Basing Operations,” the report explained.
However, global power competition is not the only threat facing state actors across the Asia Pacific region.
According to the U.S. INDOPACOM Commander, US Navy Admiral John Aquilino, “translational and ethno-nationalist” violent extremist organisations (VEOs) “remain active across the Indo-Pacific region”.
“The December 2023 bombing of a Catholic Mass in the southern Philippines that killed four is only the most recent reminder,” Aquilino warned U.S. politicians in his annual INDOPACOM posture statement in Washington, DC on 20 March.
“While VEO strength as a whole in the region is far from its pinnacle, and security forces throughout the region have thinned VEO ranks, we must remain vigilant in our efforts to prevent violent extremists from planning and executing attacks,” Aquilino went onto explain.
The ongoing threat of VEOs – a focus area for the U.S. and many of its NATO Allies over the first two decades of the century, particularly in the Middle East and South-Central Asia – continues to drive high levels in multi-lateral cooperation across the Asia Pacific region, especially when it comes to counter-extremism, counter-terrorism (CT) and counter-insurgency (COIN) capabilities.
Describing the vastness of his geographical area of interest, Aquilino specifically highlighted a series of examples which best underline multi-lateral cooperation in CT across the region.
These include: Singapore’s Counter-Terrorism Information Facility (CITF) which uses network analysis and multi-layer analytics to identify trends, aberrations and terrorist threats; delivery of 18 ScanEagle uncrewed air systems (UAS) from the U.S. to Malaysia in 2022 to support CT missions; and even potential opportunities to enhance CT cooperation with the Maldives in the future.
Elsewhere, CT remains a critical area of concern for the so-called ‘Quad’ group of nations which includes Australia, India, Japan and the U.S. In December 2023, the group met in Honolulu, Hawaii to conduct the Quad’s inaugural CT Working Group meeting which included the attendance of Japan’s Head of International Cooperation for Counter Terrorism and International Organised Crime, Sugiyama Akira.
According to an official statement published by the group, the meeting focused on “…exchanging information on ever-evolving terrorism threats; further developing regional coordination mechanisms including aid coordination; and countering terrorist use of emerging technologies”.
A tabletop exercise also took place at the event with the aim of expanding Quad cooperation in response to “overwhelming incidents in the Indo-Pacific region”, the official statement added.
Multi-lateral Exercises
Separate to the Quad, state actors from across the region continue to meet bi- and multi-laterally to increase levels in cooperation when it comes to CT, COIN and countering extremism. Many of these agreements are conducted by members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), which continues to foster security relations across the region.
Some of the most important multi-lateral opportunities designed to extend levels in CT/COIN capabilities revolve around joint training programmes between armed forces, law enforcement, paramilitary groups and security agencies.
Examples include Exercise Cobra Gold, an annual and multi-national exercise conducted in Thailand, which most recently took place in February this year.
“Established in 1982 as a bi-lateral maritime exercise between the U.S. and Thailand, Cobra Gold has expanded throughout the past four decades to include other countries including Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan and South Korea,” a U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) statement confirmed.
“The event is the longest-running international exercise in the world, a fact that exercise leadership attributes to a long-standing history of cooperation and enduring partnerships.
In the last 20 years, the nations represented here have trained together, with that training put to operational use in responding to seismic and life-threatening events,” explained U.S. Ambassador to Thailand, Robert Godec at the event.
“Only through cooperation can we rise to these challenges and keep our people safe by providing a solid foundation for regional security and inclusive prosperity,” he added.
This year, the exercise expanded its remit yet further to improve collaboration between participating nations to enhance regional stability. Joint training focused on a range of mission types, including cyber and over-the-horizon threats; humanitarian assistance/disaster relief and civic aid.
At the end of the exercise, Lt Gen Xavier Brunson, Commanding General of the U.S. Army’s I Corps at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, US, declared: “[Cobra Gold] is a decades-long example of the enduring partnerships that bind our nations together. As we train and learn from each other, we symbolise the strength that comes from unity, shared goals, and the commitment to regional stability.”
Outside of Exercise Cobra Gold, Thai special operations forces also play in a critical role in supporting the country’s Counter-Terrorism Operations Center (CTOC) which continues to receive training from the U.S. Army’s 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) to “…sharpen the special operations forces critical combined arms skills, which consist of pistol and rifle fundamentals, among other advanced shooting techniques”.
Similar multi-lateral exercises are conducted every year in the Philippines as part of the annual Balikatan exercise, the most recent of which started on 11 April and was scheduled to run through to May, featuring the participation of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the U.S. DoD.
In 2023, the exercise focused on developing capabilities of participating forces in terms of maritime security, amphibious operations, live-fire exercise, urban operations, aviation operations, counter-terrorism, and humanitarian assistance and disaster response, according to US exercise officials.
At the time, General Andres Centino, Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff, announced: “For the Armed Forces of the Philippines, in particular, this year’s Balikatan Exercise is most timely, as we fast-track the enhancement of our capabilities for maritime security and domain awareness, as well as our employment concept of newly acquired equipment and weapon systems under our modernisation program and application of newly developed doctrines – with the end-in-view of projecting a credible defence posture”.
China’s Approach
Elsewhere in the region, the PRC’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) continues to push ahead with its own CT/COIN strategy across Asia Pacific.
In January, the PRC published its “China Legal Framework and Measures for Counter-Terrorism” white paper which included chapters on “Standardised Exercise of Power in Fighting Terrorism and “Effective Protection of People’s Safety and National Security”.
According to China’s Ministry of National Defence (MND), terrorism is the “common enemy of humanity, posing a grave threat to international peace and security, and representing a challenge to all countries and all humanity. All members of the international community share the responsibility to fight it”.
The white paper described terrorism as a ‘real threat’ to the PRC and confirmed how the country continued to attach “great importance to law-based counterterrorism efforts”. It also highlighted how armed forces and law enforcement had “accumulated experience by concluding or joining international conventions and treaties and amending and improving criminal laws”.
Over the past several years, PRC CT units have collaborated with partners from across Asia Pacific including ASEAN partners to develop capabilities and improve levels in cooperation.
Examples include regular multi-lateral exchanges and exercise with strategic partners in the region. Typically conducted at PLA Training Grounds across the country, exercises have focused on CT capabilities in dense urban environments.
Live-fire exercises have typically seen PLA special operations units training with ASEAN partners to develop tactics, techniques and procedures “to enhance the countries’ ability to jointly combat terrorism”.
Scenarios, according to a spokesperson from the MND, revolve around three elements which include: “Counter-hijacking in urban environments; seizing control of terrorist camps; and eliminating terrorist camps in mountainous areas”.
“The scenarios put to test the effectiveness of the multinational Counter-Terrorism Task Group headquarters in coordinating special assault, ground assault, air assault and mobile strike teams after armed terrorists carried out the attacks around a city simultaneously including attacking a crowded theatre, taking hostages and kidnapping key government officials.
“Exercises were designed under the principles of conducting joint operations and piloting innovative tactics for actual combat situations. Officers and soldiers from different countries worked together in different assault detachments to learn from each other and enhance cooperation in combat situation,” explained a CT instructor based at the PLA’s Special Operations Academy in Guangzhou.
The PLA has also developed a “new tactical communication network” for joint CT exercises to help “…solve the key problems in Counter-Terrorism operation communications in urban environments,” according to the MND.
“The network supported communications between the multinational troops as well as the communication between air and ground assault teams. It also ensured the transmission of live feeds from the front lines and that all commands reached the counter-terrorism task forces,” an MND statement explained.
“Besides using the ‘BeiDou’ Navigation Satellite System, we also used another positioning system, which has been set up around the buildings to better locate the troop’s exact locations as buildings in cities may affect the signals of the navigation satellite system to allow us to better assess the combat situation,” the statement added.
Today, Chinese CT units from special operations forces and law enforcement continue to conduct operations against VEOs which the Ministry of National Defense (MND) claims to be “wreaking havoc in Afghanistan and operating and carrying out activities in China and Central Asia countries [and] threatening regional peace and security”.
MND officials highlighted VEOs including the Islamic State Khorasan Province, Al-Qaeda and the East Turkestan Islamic Movement as examples current threat to the PRC.
In September 2023, the PLA deployed troops to Russia’s Eastern Military District to take part in the CT Field Training Exercise of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus Experts’ Working Group.
“During the exercise, the troops of different countries would conduct training on the establishment of counter-terrorism task forces, counter-terrorism operations, and other subjects in mixed groups,” an official MND statement announced at the time.
“This is a tangible move taken by the Chinese military to vigorously participate in pragmatic cooperation under the ADMM-Plus mechanism. It will help promote counter-terrorism cooperation among countries related to ADMM-Plus and enhance their capabilities of jointly responding to security threats and preserving regional peace and stability,” the statement added.
ADMM-Plus membership includes ASEAN members Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam as well as Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, and the US.
“China is ready to work with all countries to jointly combat terrorism, a public enemy of the international community — upholding the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind — and continue to make positive contributions to international counter-terrorism cooperation,” the MND spokesperson added.
Conclusion
Looking to the future, it appears likely Asia Pacific will benefit from separated, multi-lateral CT efforts led by the PRC and US respectively although there does remain some kind of cooperation through ADMM-Plus membership which includes both countries.
by Andrew White
