// Asia-Pacific Conference
Pacific Rim Air Power Symposium
Representatives from nations throughout the Asia-Pacific region met in Wellington on 25 June to discuss multilateral humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
The talks were part of the 2009 Pacific Rim Airpower Symposium, co-hosted this year by the Royal New Zealand Air Force and the United States Air Force. The annual symposium encourages relationship building and enhances cooperation among the air forces of Asia-Pacific nations. This year’s symposium theme, “Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Operations – Managing the Seams,” aimed at helping participants understand the various approaches to disaster response by civilian and military agencies, different nations, and military branches.
Air Commodore Gavin Howse, Air Component Commander Joint Forces New Zealand, said the symposium’s theme was fitting given the high propensity for natural disasters in the Asia-Pacific region. “Air forces can play a significant role in managing disaster responses, but we as nations cannot work in isolation,” Air Commodore Howse said. “This year’s theme will enable us all to improve our interoperability and better manage our collective crisis response.”
Delegations from Australia, Canada, Chile, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tonga, the United States and Vietnam participated.