Australia and its ASEAN neighbors vowed to boost defense ties while stressing the importance of non-militarization in the disputed South China Sea on Sunday at a summit where the “complex” Rohingya crisis took centre-stage. Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, said the crisis was “a concern for all ASEAN countries, and yet ASEAN is not able to intervene to force an outcome”.  Asean leaders also agreed to work more closely to tackle the growing menace of violent extremism and radicalization. They exchanged views with the Australian prime minister on ways to boost cooperation on security issues, particularly cybersecurity. To that end, a landmark memorandum of understanding to combat international terrorism was inked on Saturday.