JAKARATA, November 16. /TASS/. The Russian Defense Ministry is ready to support all rational initiatives of its ADMM-Plus partners, Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin said.

"All these years the Russian Defense Ministry actively participated in ADMM-Plus and continues to contribute considerably to the strengthening of our common security and support regional initiatives of other partners in all the guidelines of military cooperation," he told the 10th meeting of ASEAN dialogue partners (ADMM-Plus) on Thursday.

Fomin recalled that Russia assisted the creation of the ASEAN military medical center in Bangkok in 2016, which promoted interaction of military medics during COVID-19 pandemic.

"We believe the potential of the center has not been exhausted and it will help timely react to infectious epidemics, counter bio terrorism and provide assistance of Asia-Pacific nations in emergency situations," he said.

The Russian Defense Ministry traditionally pays much attention to mine clearance. In 2018-2023, Russian and Lao engineers cleared over 160 hectares in Laos and neutralized over 2300 explosives. Fomin said Russia is ready to develop partnership with Laos as the co-chair of the ADMM-Plus taskforce for humanitarian mine clearance in 2024-2027.

The Russian Defense Ministry contributed to counterterrorist fight. Together with Myanmar, it held an international counterterrorist exercise with the military from 12 ADMM-Plus countries participating. Close to 700 soldiers were engaged.

"We are sure that the results of interaction in the fight against terrorism and the practical experience obtained by the military during joint training will be fruitful and in demand of the participating countries," Fomin said.