Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has highlighted the importance of unity and solidarity within ASEAN during a summit organized in Vientiane on Tuesday.
Advertisement
Modi said on Tuesday that Southeast Asia was the key to the development of India’s northeastern region.
After the talks, the Asean leaders will separately meet their counterparts from Australia, China, India, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States, who are in Vientiane to attend the East Asia Summit.
Sharing his visit on social messaging site Facebook, PM Modi said, “Our strategic partnership with ASEAN is also important for safeguarding and promoting our security interests and countering traditional and non-traditional security challenges in the region,”.
“We wish to enhance our physical and digital connectivity; to see greater people to people links; to strengthen our institutional linkages; and, to leverage the modern interconnected world for the mutual benefit of all our people”, the Prime Minister said.
In addition to this, he said, the leaders were also expected to have constructive discussion on the Asean-China cooperation throughout its 25 years of cooperation and its future direction.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said that the relations between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are getting mature after the two sides established dialogue mechanism 25 years ago. According to Liu Zhenmin, China’s vice foreign minister, people-to-people exchanges would be viewed as a new pillar for China-ASEAN cooperation.
He congratulated Laos, as the ASEAN Chair in 2016, on its successful organisation of the ten-member group’s major meetings, significantly contributing to the building of the ASEAN Community and maintaining the intra-bloc solidarity, for the sake of peace, stability and development in the region and the world at large.
India, being a founding member of the EAS, is committed to strengthening the EAS and making it more effective for dealing with contemporary challenges.
“Our ties with the countries of South East Asia are truly historic”, Modi stated.
At the 11th East Asia Summit, leaders will discuss matters of regional and worldwide interest and concerns including maritime security, terrorism, non-proliferation and irregular migration.
Advertisement
At the 11th EAS, the leaders will discuss matters of regional and global interest and concern including maritime security, terrorism, non-proliferation, irregular migration, and so on.
