AARM-24 officially kicked off

PANO – The 24th ASEAN Armies Rifle Meet (AARM-24) was officially kicked off on November 19th in Mieu Mon National Training Center, Hanoi.

Vietnamese high-ranking officers attending the opening ceremony

Senior Lieutenant General Do Ba Ty, Chief of the General Staff and Deputy Minister of National Defence; Senior Lieutenant General Ngo Xuan Lich, Head of the General Department of Politics; Senior Lieutenant General Truong Quang Khanh, Deputy Minister of National Defence, and deputy chiefs of ASEAN armies, defence attachés of 10 ASEAN countries to Vietnam and 10 shooting contingents attended the event.

At sharp 8.30, the opening ceremony started with the solemn reception of the deputy chiefs of ASEAN armies. The ceremony then proceeded with the parade of contingents, the AARM flag-raising ceremony, the opening speech of Lieutenant General Nguyen Quoc Khanh, and the token presentation to the 10 contingents.

In the opening speech, Lieutenant General Nguyen Quoc Khanh, Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Head of the AARM-24 Organizing Committee stressed, “AARM-24 is a chance for ASEAN armies to expand integration, exchange, and cooperation, building up strong armies aiming at protecting stability and sustainable development of ASEAN member countries, contributing to common peace, security, and prosperity of ASEAN and the world…”

The ceremony closed with drum and music performances of the military music troupe, and martial arts performances of the commando force.

After the ceremony, deputy chiefs of army of the 10 ASEAN countries were divided into two groups to join the novelty shooting competitions in pistol and carbine categories. Group A consisted of Vietnam, Brunei, Myanmar, Singapore and Malaysia. Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, and the Philippines went to Group B. After two shooting events, Group B won the competitions.

The ASEAN Armies Rifle Meet is hosted on the annual basis and by ASEAN countries. This year, AARM-24 is held in Vietnam with the theme “Solidarity, Friendship, Mutual Understanding and Mutual Learning”, aiming at enhancing integration and solidarity and friendship among armies in the region.

Here are some photos of the event.