South China Sea Military Diplomacy

Brunei Sultan Hassanal Meets Dong Jun

文莱苏丹哈桑纳尔会见董军

PLA Daily (解放军报) 28 July 2026

Summary

Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun met Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah in Bandar Seri Begawan on July 28, with both sides affirming defense cooperation as a pillar of the bilateral strategic partnership and Brunei explicitly welcoming additional PLA Navy port visits. Dong framed the South China Sea as a shared regional concern and offered expanded maritime security cooperation — framing that positions Beijing as a stabilizing partner rather than a source of friction in waters where Brunei holds overlapping claims. The meeting documents a pattern of Dong using bilateral defense diplomacy to cultivate ASEAN states on South China Sea narratives, though what specific naval access arrangements, if any, Brunei's port-visit invitation is meant to advance remains unstated.

Translation

On July 28, Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah met in Bandar Seri Begawan with visiting Chinese Minister of National Defense Dong Jun.

Hassanal said that the relationship between Brunei and China is deep-rooted, and that both sides are jointly committed to building a community of shared future (命运共同体). Brunei firmly adheres to the one-China policy, appreciates China's support for ASEAN centrality, and sincerely thanks China for its support of Brunei's efforts to advance "Wawasan 2035," expressing hope that the two countries will strengthen cooperation on regional issues of common concern. Defense cooperation is an important pillar of the two countries' strategic partnership. In recent years, the two militaries have achieved fruitful results in cooperation in the areas of institutional dialogue, personnel exchanges, and education and training. Brunei welcomes deepening exchanges and cooperation between the two militaries and welcomes more Chinese naval vessels to make port visits.

Dong Jun said that this year marks the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Brunei. Under the strategic guidance of the two countries' heads of state, the two sides have seen in-depth development of political mutual trust, economic mutual benefit, people-to-people connectivity, and multilateral mutual assistance, setting an example of equal treatment and mutual benefit between large and small countries. The current development of military-to-military cooperation between China and Brunei faces important opportunities; both sides should seize the momentum, comprehensively elevate the level of cooperation across all areas, and make greater contributions—through more substantive results—to building a China-Brunei community of shared future (中文命运共同体) and opening new prospects for bilateral relations. Peace in the South China Sea concerns the common interests of regional countries; China is willing to strengthen practical cooperation with Brunei in maritime security and other areas to jointly safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea.

Original Chinese

7月28日，文莱苏丹哈桑纳尔在斯里巴加湾会见到访的中国国防部长董军。哈桑纳尔说，文中两国关系深厚，双方正共同致力于构建命运共同体。文方坚定奉行一个中国政策，赞赏中方支持东盟中心地位，衷心感谢中方支持文推动实现“2035宏愿”，希望两国在共同关心的地区问题上加强合作。防务合作是两国战略合作伙伴关系的重要支柱。近年来，两军在机制性对话、人员往来和教育培训等领域合作卓有成效。文方乐见两军深化交流合作，欢迎更多中国海军舰艇来访。董军说，今年是中文建交35周年，在两国元首战略引领下，双方政治互信、经济互利、人文互通、多边互助深入发展，树立了大小国家平等相待、互利共赢的典范。当前中文两军合作发展面临重要机遇，应乘势而上，全方位提升各领域合作水平，以更多务实成果，为构建中文命运共同体、开辟两国关系新前景作出更大贡献。南海和平关乎地区国家共同利益，中方愿同文方加强海上安全等务实合作，共同维护南海和平稳定。