BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN - THE United States of America is seeking to further strengthen ties with Brunei next year.
In his New Year message, US Ambassador to Brunei Daniel Shields(picture) said Brunei and US enjoyed a good relationship, as reflected by His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam’s visit to Washington in March.
This was followed by the visit of His Royal Highness Crown Prince Hj Al-Muhtadee Billah and HRH Prince Mohamed Bolkiah for the United Nations General Assembly.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State John Kerry visited Brunei in June for the ASEAN Regional Forum and in October when he represented President Barack Obama at the East Asia Summit and the first US-ASEAN Summit.
Shields also congratulated Brunei for successfully chairing the ASEAN summit before handing the chairmanship to Myanmar.
He also noted military cooperation where US troops took part in the regional Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Military Medicine exercise.
Brunei also welcomes US Secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel for the ASEAN Defense Minister’s Meeting, the message added.
“The US and Brunei worked together in the Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) exercise. US government officials, companies and military aircraft including two Osprey MV22s, a C-17 and a KC-130J joined Brunei’s BRIDEX exhibition,” he said.
The year 2013 was also a successful year for US-Brunei economic and cultural relations. In September, Brunei hosted the Solar Energy Workshop as part of the five-year initiative led by the US Department of Energy and Energy Department of Brunei’s Prime Minister’s Office.
Moreover, 2013 also saw the launch of the US-ASEAN Fulbright Visiting Scholar Programme and the Forum on English for ASEAN integration, part of the productive Brunei-US English Language Enrichment Project for ASEAN.
“In sum, there is much to be appreciated, and much to look forward to, in the development of the US-Brunei relationship. May 2014 bring further partnership, prosperity and cause for celebration in US-Brunei relations,” he said. - Harny Abu Khair
The Brunei Times
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