India today hosted ASEAN Foreign Ministers and Secretary General for a Special ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (SAIFMM) to commemorate 30 years of ASEAN-India Dialogue Relations.
External Affairs Ministry said, the meetings were held in an atmosphere of friendship and cooperation. It said, importance of India-ASEAN relations was underlined in the meetings as ASEAN plays an important role in India’s Act East Policy and its vision for the wider Indo-Pacific.
The Special ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers’ Meeting was co-chaired by External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Singapore Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan. The Meeting was also attended by Foreign Ministers of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and representatives of Foreign Ministers from Lao PDR, Philippines and Thailand along with Secretary General of ASEAN.
The Ministers reviewed the status of ASEAN-India Partnership and set out the path for the coming decade. Deliberations were held on COVID-19 & Health, Trade & Commerce, Connectivity, Education and Capacity Building as well as implementation of ASEAN-India Joint Statement on Cooperation on the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific. The Ministers also exchanged views on important regional and international developments and post-pandemic economic recovery. The meeting unanimously adopted the Co-Chairs’ statement.
