Rajnath Singh likely to meet U.S. Defence Secretary on ADMM-Plus sidelines in Malaysia

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is likely to hold bilateral talks with United States Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on the sidelines of the 12th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting – Plus (ADMM-Plus) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

In May this year, both leaders held a telephonic conversation to review ongoing and upcoming initiatives aimed at strengthening defence cooperation between India and the United States.

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According to the Ministry of Defence, Mr. Singh will address the ADMM-Plus forum on the theme “Reflection on 15 Years of ADMM-Plus and Charting the Way Forward” on November 1. On the sidelines, the second edition of the ASEAN-India Defence Ministers’ Informal Meeting, chaired by Malaysia, will be held on October 31.

Defence Ministers from all ASEAN member countries are expected to participate. The meeting aims to reinforce defence and security cooperation between India and ASEAN nations, furthering the objectives of India’s Act East Policy.

During the two-day visit, Mr. Singh is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with counterparts from participating ADMM-Plus countries, as well as senior Malaysian leadership.

ADMM serves as ASEAN’s highest defence consultative and cooperative mechanism. The ADMM-Plus platform includes the 10 ASEAN member states—Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste, and Vietnam—along with eight dialogue partners: India, the United States, China, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand.

India became a dialogue partner of ASEAN in 1992, and the inaugural ADMM-Plus meeting was held in Hanoi, Vietnam, on October 12, 2010. Since 2017, the forum has been convened annually to strengthen regional defence cooperation among ASEAN and partner countries.

Under the current ADMM-Plus framework, India and Malaysia are co-chairs of the Experts’ Working Group on Counter Terrorism for the 2024–2027 cycle. The second edition of the ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise is also scheduled to take place in 2026, reflecting the growing depth of India-ASEAN defence engagement.