Gen. Vincent K. Brooks, U.S. Army Pacific commander, talked to multinational Asia-Pacific allies and partners about the utilization of land forces to maintain stability and security in the region during the second annual Association of the United States Army LANPAC Symposium and Exposition held in Honolulu, Hawaii, in April.Brooks stressed using service members on the ground to help nations in the region maintain stability."U.S. Pacific Command has been a part of a framework of underwriting security that has allowed the emergence of prosperity and changes in forms of governance for over sixty years," Brooks said.Adding, "That is from a military capacity that’s been positioned in the region as a stabilizer whenever possible as a reassurance to treaty partners in the region and as a force that can respond when there is a crisis."Brooks also addressed the importance of land forces in bringing humanitarian relief to Asia-Pacific nations following a natural disaster.That cooperation between countries in the region is essential to saving lives and rebuilding."The work does not end with the initial response," Brooks said. "This is once again in the land domain in a place where humans live or die that the work continues."He added, "Our efforts though are first intended to help a host nation deal with the consequences of not only the disaster but dealing with the consequences of the response."Brooks also pointed to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and other countries that helped the Philippines after the destruction left by Typhoon Haiyan in October 2013.This as an example of multilateral cooperation between the U.S. and its allies in the Asia-Pacific region."Multinational coordination became a very important contribution that the U.S. delegation was able to make once [the U.S. Joint Task Force was] committed there to assist the government of the Philippines in receiving countries and contributions who came with different capabilities and different resources," Brooks said.The Asia-Pacific contains 30 percent of the global economy and according to the United Nations Environment Programme’s official website, nearly half the world’s natural disasters occur in the region.Brooks also explained how training and readiness exercises with other countries help increase preparedness when responding to these crises."We have a foundation of realistic scenarios in our exercises," he said.Adding, "There is a typhoon scenario for the Philippines in previous exercises in Balikatan. Humanitarian aid and disaster response, we believe, is a mechanism that can help to increase dialogue and trust so that there is not as great a potential for miscalculation."Relationships built between allies and partners throughout the region are key to mutual defense and form a basis for multilateral security arrangements, Brooks emphasized."Bilateral relationships are the cornerstones of multilateral cooperation that can become essential to success in responding to the hazards and threats of this region," he said.Representatives from Asia-Pacific nations were also able to discuss topics including information warfare and cyber activities, leveraging training with technology, and partnerships with nongovernmental organizations during the three-day symposium.(Editor’s note: This story is based on an article by Staff Sgt. Chris Hubenthal, Defense Media Activity, Hawaii News Bureau.)