PM Modi announces 10-point plan to strengthen India-ASEAN ties

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday announced a 10-point plan to strengthen India-ASEAN comprehensive partnership and asserted that ties with the regional grouping were critical to guiding Asia's future.

Addressing the 21st India-ASEAN Summit here, Modi noted that India-ASEAN trade had doubled to over USD 130 billion in the past decade and announced a review of the trade in goods agreement to harness the greater economic potential of the partnership.

“I believe that the 21st century – the Asian century – is the century of India and ASEAN nations,” the Prime Minister said while addressing the leaders of the ASEAN nations that include Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Vietnam, Laos and Singapore.

The Prime Minister said India was commemorating the 10th anniversary of its Act East Policy, which has given new energy, direction and momentum to the historic relationship between India and the ASEAN nations.

“The India-ASEAN Summit was a productive one. We discussed how to further strengthen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between India and ASEAN. We look forward to deepening trade ties, cultural linkages and cooperation in technology, connectivity and other such sectors,” he said in a post on X after the summit.

The 10-point plan to further strengthen the India-ASEAN partnership includes celebrating the year 2025 as the ASEAN-India Year of Tourism, doubling the number of scholarships at Nalanda University and providing new grants for ASEAN students at Agricultural Universities in India.