Chancellor Xu Bu of the People’s Republic of China UN Mission speaks on the “Changing Geopolitical Context.”

Representatives from Japan and Indonesia listen to a conference speaker.

Indonesian Navy Adm. Sudjiwo, Indian Navy Rear Adm. Anup Singh, and Indonesian Air Force Col. Harsono enjoy a conference break.

• The lack of good governance is an obstacle that breeds insurgencies, terrorism, separatism, and corruption. National development and social progress rests on good governance.

• The Global War on Terrorism presents a new and different challenge. The region faces a new age of war that includes fanaticism and technology. Defeating what the terrorists represent is difficult.

Speaking at the conclusion of the conference, Pakistan Army Brig. Gen. Banaras Khan Jadoon said, "[The APCSS reminds] us that knowledge is indeed power, that the truth (if we can find it) will literally set us free, and that the path to truth is through open and open-minded dialogue."

Brig. Gen. Jadoon also noted ". . . education is what remains after we have unlearned the things that have been programmed into us throughout our lives. Education is a lifelong pursuit that is our means of conveyance along the road from ignorance to awareness to knowledge to understanding to wisdom. The APCSS experience has been designed to break down barriers and build new relationships that can withstand and overcome the pettiness of politics, the provincialism of culture, the deafness and dumbness of ideology, and the inertia of bureaucracy."

About the APCSS

The APCSS is a regional study, conference and research center established in Honolulu on 4 September 1995. The center reports to the U.S. Pacific Command (USPACOM) and complements USPACOM’s theater security cooperation strategy of maintaining positive security relations with all nations in the region. With its non-warfighting, academic focus, the APCSS builds on strong bilateral relations between USPACOM and Asia-Pacific governments and their armed forces by focusing on multilateral approaches to addressing regional security issues and concerns.

The center’s mission is to enhance cooperation and build relationships through mutual understanding and study of comprehensive security issues among military and civilian representatives of the United States and other Asia-Pacific nations. The APCSS provides a forum where representatives from the countries of the region gather to exchange ideas, explore pressing issues, and achieve greater understanding of the challenges that shape the security environment of the Asia-Pacific region. A primary focus is the increasingly complex interrelationships of military, economic, political, and diplomatic policies relevant to regional security issues.

The center’s faculty and staff consist of about 122 people. The other nations of the Asia-Pacific region are well represented among the fellows, the faculty, and research scholars. The staff, teaching faculty, and fellows have access to an information management system connected to the Internet and selected regional information management systems.