India completely supports the strong, united and prosperous ASEAN: MEA

New Delhi: Foreign Ministers of ASEAN countries are in India for a special meeting with India, and they met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Indian External Affairs Minister announced that India fully supports a strong, united, prosperous ASEAN. He also said that a meaningful and comprehensive partnership is necessary between India and the ASEAN countries. The hegemonic Chinese activities in the Indo-Pacific sector pose a major threat to the ASEAN member countries. Against this background, the partnerships of the ASEAN with India have become strategically very important.

Vietnam, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei and Laos are the members of ASEAN. Myanmar also is a member of the organisation. But Myanmar was not included in the meeting of ASEAN with India. The Myanmar military has grabbed power, overthrowing the elected government. Therefore, the Junta regime in Myanmar has not been recognised on the international level. Therefore, taking the opposition from the ASEAN countries into account, India did not invite Myanmar to the meeting. But the Foreign Ministers of the ASEAN member countries present at the conference again underlined the importance of cooperation with India.

Vivian Balakrishnan, Foreign Minister of Singapore, accused on the occasion of the meeting that the rivalry and competition between the superpowers, the United States and China, is directly impacting the ASEAN countries. In response, Indian External Affairs Minister Jaishankar assured complete cooperation for a strong, united and prosperous ASEAN. External Affairs Minister Jaishankar also expressed confidence that ASEAN can play a pivotal role in the Indo-Pacific sector. The Indian External Affairs Minister noted that ASEAN has always adopted an ideological stand for regional identity, multilateralism and globalisation.

The Indian External Affairs Minister also suggested that ASEAN has created its own place in the region and laid the foundation of strategic and economic structure for the Indo-Pacific sector.