ASEAN is considered one of the most influential groupings in the region and has dialogue partners with India and many other countries including the US, China, Japan and Australia. Modi’s talks with the grouping leaders are likely to focus mainly on strengthening India’s trade and security ties with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Saurabh Kumar, Secretary (East) in the Ministry of External Affairs, told a press conference that Modi will review the progress in ASEAN-India relations at the summit and give the way forward. “The Prime Minister will leave Delhi on the night of September 6 and will return on the late evening of September 7,” he said. It will be a short visit given that the G20 summit will be held immediately after the ASEAN summit.
When asked if the issue of China’s release of so-called ‘new standard’ maps would figure in the summit, Kumar said, ‘It is difficult to predict what will be discussed when the leaders meet, but the issues are of mutual concern. – All will be raised — regional and international.” , the senior official said he could not predict what would emerge from the discussions.
, Beijing released the 2023 edition of the ‘Standard Map of China’ on August 28 which shows Taiwan, the South China Sea, Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai China as Chinese territories. India has rejected the ‘map’ and has strongly protested against China over it. Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines, angered by China’s territorial claims over the South China Sea, have already rejected the claim.
Kumar said New Delhi appreciated Indonesia for making adjustments in the schedule of the ASEAN meeting to facilitate the prime minister’s early return. “It is a very short visit as the Prime Minister will be hosting the G20 summit and the effort is to attend this important summit (ASEAN-India) and return home as soon as possible,” Kumar said. Therefore, there will be no bilateral (meeting) during the visit.
He said the ASEAN-India summit will be ‘special’ as it is the first since the two sides upgraded ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership last year. Kumar said, “India’s relationship with ASEAN is a central pillar of our ‘Act East’ policy and India’s vision for the broader Indo-Pacific. India and ASEAN have extensive ties.
Referring to the launch of flight connectivity between India and Vietnam and Indonesia, he said that similar connectivity with other member countries of the grouping is also being considered. On economic ties, Kumar said India-ASEAN trade was only US $131.5 billion in 2022-23. “It contributed more than 11 percent to India’s trade during the year and is the second largest after India-EU trade,” he said.
He said that during the ASEAN-India Economic Ministers’ Meeting in August, the two sides initiated a review of the ASEAN-India Goods Trade Agreement (AITIGA) and agreed to complete it by 2025. The 10 member countries of ASEAN include Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia. Relations between India and ASEAN have grown significantly over the years, with a focus on enhancing cooperation in the areas of trade and investment as well as security and defence.
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