JERUDONG, Tuesday, 25 November 2025 – The Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies (SHHBIDSS), Ministry of Defence convened the 13th East Asia Security Outlook (EASO) Seminar with the theme, “Borneo as a Nexus: Key to Regional Advancement and Sustainability” at the Indera
Samudra Grand
Hall, The Empire, Brunei Darussalam.
Present as the Guest of Honour was Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Lailaraja Major General (Retired) Dato Paduka Seri Awang Haji Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof, Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Defence II.
Last held in 2019, the EASO Seminar returns at a significant juncture amidst shifting regional geopolitical dynamics, the emergence of new and complex security challenges and a renewed interest in the strategic importance of Borneo. Against this backdrop, the Seminar explored the externalities associated with economic connectivity and development in Borneo, where major regional projects and power interests intersect with the issues of migration, environmental degradation, and transnational threats. Furthermore, it assessed how Brunei Darussalam and its counterparts can leverage economic growth, strategic cooperation, and sustainable development to maintain a stable and people-centred Asia-Pacific region.
For this 13th iteration, Professor Ooi Keat Gin from the Academy of Brunei Studies, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, delivered the Keynote Address, revisiting Borneo’s historical marginalisation and examining its re-emergence as a pivotal nexus in Southeast Asia. Tracing the island’s evolving geopolitical and economic significance, from the era of the Brunei Darussalam’s maritime kingdom to the post-war period, his address introduced the concept of “Borneo as Nexus” - advocating for the island’s repositioning through the empowerment of its strategic, human, and natural resources, and proposing measures for its future development.
Yang Berhormat Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Defence II then presented a token of appreciation to Professor Ooi Keat Gin for his contribution as the Keynote Speaker to the seminar.
The subsequent sessions featured presentations by nine esteemed speakers representing leading institutions, namely the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (Republic of Indonesia), Institute of Strategic and International Studies Malaysia (Malaysia), National Defence University of Malaysia (Malaysia), National Research and Innovation Agency (Republic of Indonesia), Rabdan Security and Defence Institute (United Arab Emirates), Standard Chartered Bank (Brunei Darussalam), and Universiti Brunei Darussalam (Brunei Darussalam).
The Seminar was attended by more than 200 participants, including the members of the Defence and Royal Brunei Armed Forces Executive Committees, Directors and senior officers of the Ministry of Defence, as well as foreign Defence Attaches and Defence Advisers stationed in Brunei Darussalam. Also present were officers from the Prime Minister’s Office, Ministry of Finance and Economy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Defence, Royal Brunei Police Force, and local higher education institutions.
Since its inception in 2009, the EASO Seminar is one of the flagship event organised by SHHBIDSS, Ministry of Defence, aimed at providing a platform for dialogue on the strategic landscape of East Asia and its surrounding regions, while fostering engagement among defence and security officials on regional defence, strategic and security-related issues.
SEMINAR
EAST ASIA SECURITY OUTLOOK (EASO) KALI KE-13 MENGENAI ‘BORNEO AS A NEXUS: KEY TO REGIONAL ADVANCEMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY’
JERUDONG, Selasa, 25 November 2025 – Institut Pengajian Pertahanan dan Strategik Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah (IPPSSHHB), Kementerian Pertahanan, telah mengadakan Seminar
East Asia Security Outlook (EASO) yang ke-13 dengan tema, “Borneo as a Nexus: Key to Regional Advancement and Sustainability” bertempat di Indera
Samudra Grand
Hall, The Empire, Negara Brunei Darussalam.
Hadir selaku Tetamu Kehormat ialah Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Lailaraja Mejar Jeneral (Bersara) Dato Paduka Seri Awang Haji Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof, Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri dan Menteri Pertahanan II.
Diadakan kali terakhir pada tahun 2019, penganjuran semula Seminar EASO ini berlangsung pada waktu yang signifikan,
ketika dinamik geopolitik serantau sedang pesat berubah, cabaran keselamatan baharu dan kompleks semakin muncul, dan meningkatnya semula minat terhadap kepentingan strategik Borneo. Dalam konteks ini, Seminar tersebut meneliti pelbagai kesan luaran yang berkaitan dengan keterhubungan ekonomi dan pembangunan di Borneo, di mana projek-projek utama serantau dan kepentingan kuasa bertembung dengan isu penghijrahan, kemerosotan alam sekitar, serta ancaman rentas sempadan. Selain itu, Seminar ini turut menilai bagaimana Negara Brunei Darussalam dan rakan-rakan serantau dapat memanfaatkan pertumbuhan ekonomi, kerjasama strategik, dan pembangunan mampan bagi memastikan
rantau Asia-Pasifik kekal stabil dan berorientasikan kepentingan rakyat.
Bagi edisi ke-13 ini, Profesor Ooi Keat Gin daripada Akademi Pengajian Brunei, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, telah menyampaikan Ucaptama dengan menyingkap kembali sejarah peminggiran Borneo dan meneliti kebangkitan semulanya sebagai pusat penghubung penting di Asia Tenggara. Dengan menelusuri perubahan kepentingan geopolitik dan ekonomi pulau tersebut, bermula dari era kerajaan maritim Negara Brunei Darussalam hinggalah ke zaman pasca-perang, beliau memperkenalkan konsep “Borneo as a Nexus” – iaitu saranan untuk meletakkan semula kedudukan strategik Borneo melalui pemerkasaan sumber strategik, modal insan dan sumber alamnya, serta mencadangkan langkah-langkah untuk pembangunan masa hadapan.
Yang Berhormat Menteri di Jabatan Perdana Menteri dan Menteri Pertahanan II, kemudiannya menyampaikan cenderamata penghargaan kepada Profesor Ooi Keat Gin atas sumbangan beliau selaku Penyampai Ucaptama Seminar.
Sesi-sesi berikutnya menampilkan pembentangan oleh sembilan penceramah terkemuka yang mewakili institusi ternama, iaitu
Centre for Strategic and International Studies (Republik Indonesia), Institute of Strategic and International Studies Malaysia (Malaysia),
National Defence University of Malaysia (Malaysia),
National Research and Innovation Agency (Indonesia),
Rabdan Security and Defence Institute (Emiriah Arab Bersatu),
Standard Chartered Bank (Negara Brunei Darussalam), dan Universiti Brunei Darussalam (Negara Brunei Darussalam).
Seminar telah dihadiri oleh lebih 200 peserta, termasuk Ahli-Ahli Jawatankuasa Eksekutif Pertahanan dan Angkatan Bersenjata Diraja Brunei (ABDB), Pengarah-Pengarah dan pegawai kanan Kementerian Pertahanan, serta para Atase Pertahanan dan Penasihat Pertahanan negara-negara sahabat yang bertugas di Negara Brunei Darussalam. Turut hadir ialah pegawai-pegawai dari Jabatan Perdana Menteri, Kementerian Kewangan dan Ekonomi, Kementerian Hal Ehwal Luar Negeri, Kementerian Hal Ehwal Dalam Negeri, Kementerian Pertahanan, Pasukan Polis Diraja Brunei, serta Institusi-Institusi Pengajian Tinggi tempatan.
Sejak diperkenalkan pada tahun 2009, Seminar EASO merupakan salah satu program utama anjuran IPPSSHHB, Kementerian Pertahanan, yang bertujuan menyediakan platform untuk dialog mengenai landskap strategik rantau Asia Timur dan kawasan sekitarnya, disamping memupuk penglibatan pegawai-pegawai pertahanan dan keselamatan dalam membincangkan isu-isu berkaitan pertahanan, strategik dan keselamatan serantau.
