NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday will co-chair the 17th India-ASEAN Summit virtually with his Vietnamese counterpart Xuan Phuc.The meeting is likely to see the participation of all the 10 countries that make up the grouping.
According to an MEA statement, the summit will review the status of ASEAN-India Strategic Partnership and take stock of the progress made in important sectors like maritime cooperation, trade and commerce.
“The leaders will discuss ways to further strengthen ASEAN-India engagement and in this context will note the adoption of ASEAN-India Plan of Action (2021-2025). COVID-19, post-pandemic economic recovery and important regional and international developments will also be discussed.”
The summit comes days before ASEAN countries, along with Japan, Australia, South Korea, China and New Zealand sign the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement. India had opted out of the pact saying it was not in their interests.
Ever-growing partnership
India-ASEAN trade and investment relations have been growing steadily, with ASEAN being India’s fourth largest trading partner. India’s trade with ASEAN stands at $ 81.33 billion, which is approximately 10.6% of India’s overall trade.
export to ASEAN stand at 11.28% of the grouping’s exports. Reports suggest ASEAN-India trade is likely to touch $100 billion.