(VOVworld) – US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel will hold a series of meetings with senior Asian defense officials in the first half of next month to bolster Washington’s commitment to its rebalancing in Asia-Pacific region. The Pentagon’s Thursday press release said that Hagel will attend the annual meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which will take place in Hawaii, the US, next week. Delegates are to discuss measures on improving partnerships between military and civilian agencies to improve humanitarian assistance and disaster relief efforts in addition to security cooperation. From Hawaii, Hagel will travel to Japan, China, and Mongolia. Hagel’s trip to Mongolia is the first visit to that country by a U.S. defense secretary in nearly 10 years.