On the 16th and 17th of June, India will welcome the foreign ministers of ASEAN states to commemorate the 30th anniversary of its relations with the 10-nation bloc.
ASEAN is an organization made up of 10 Southeast Asian countries: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Myanmar’s participation in the ASEAN-India foreign ministers’ meeting would be based on the grouping’s regulations, according to External Affairs Ministry spokeswoman Arindam Bagchi, implying that the country’s foreign minister will not be in New Delhi.
Following Myanmar’s military takeover last year, ASEAN’s attitude on engaging the nation in multilateral forums has been that it should be done on a non-political level.
“On the 16th and 17th of June, India will host the Special ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (SAIFMM) to commemorate the 30th anniversary of our dialogue ties and the 10th anniversary of our strategic relationship with ASEAN,” Bagchi said at a press conference.
The meeting would be co-chaired by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Singaporean colleague Vivian Balakrishnan, he added. Singapore’s foreign minister serves as India’s ASEAN country coordinator (Association of Southeast Asian Nations).
The SAIFMM will be attended by foreign ministers from other ASEAN member nations as well as the ASEAN secretary-general, according to Bagchi. The year 2022 has been declared as the year of friendship between ASEAN and India.
When asked about Myanmar’s involvement, Bagchi stated that it will be in accordance with ASEAN guidelines. According to reports, India is unlikely to invite Myanmar’s foreign minister to the conference and would instead send an official.
Myanmar’s military took control in a coup on February 1 last year and declared a state of emergency after arresting Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and other leaders of her National League for Democracy (NLD). Following the coup, the country was rocked by enormous protests. The coup has been roundly condemned by the international world.
In 1992, ASEAN and India established sectoral cooperation, which progressed to a comprehensive dialogue relationship in December 1995, a Summit level partnership in 2002, and a strategic partnership in 2012. “The strategic alliance between ASEAN and India now has a solid base. The ASEAN lies at the heart of India’s Act East Policy and its Indo-Pacific vision “Bagchi said.
“This multi-faceted collaboration includes multiple sectoral dialogue mechanisms and working groups that meet on a regular basis at various levels, including yearly summits, ministerial, and senior official meetings,” he explained. The Plan of Action 2021-2025, which was agreed in 2020, guides the ongoing India-ASEAN cooperation.
While the ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (FMM) is held annually by the ASEAN Chair, the SAIFMM will be the first ASEAN-India FMM held in New Delhi. On June 15, the SAIFMM will be preceded by the 24th ASEAN-India Senior Officials Meeting.
On June 16-17, the SAIFMM will be followed by the 12th edition of the Delhi Dialogue, a major Track 1.5 Dialogue on the ASEAN-India calendar, which will be hosted by India.
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