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ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers Meet

Posted on June 17, 2022 by admin1  25

In News

  • The Special ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (SAIFMM) is hosted by India.
    •  The meeting was held from June 16-17 in New Delhi.

More about the event:

  • The SAIFMM is the first ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (FMM) hosted by India in New Delhi.
    • It marked two major anniversaries:
      • The 30th anniversary of India’s dialogue relations with ASEAN. 
      • The 10th anniversary of India’s Strategic Partnership with ASEAN. 
    • Myanmar was not the part of the event.
  • ASEAN-India Friendship year:
    • The year 2022 has also been designated as the ASEAN-India Friendship year.
  • ASEAN-India Senior Officials meeting: 
    • 24th ASEAN-India Senior Officials meeting also took place in New Delhi on June 15th, 2022.
  • Track 1.5 Dialogue:
    • The 12th edition of Delhi Dialogue (DD) followed the SAIFMM in New Delhi. 
    • The theme this year of DD-XII is ‘’Building Bridges in the Indo-Pacific’’.

Outcomes of the meeting 

  • Global challenges: 
    • ASEAN countries agreed to uphold multilateralism in jointly responding to the regional and global challenges
    • Ukraine crisis and its knock-on effects on food, energy security, prices of fertilisers and commodities as well as logistics and supply chains.
  • China’s assertiveness in the region: 
    • The ASEAN reaffirmed the “commitment to multilateralism founded on the principles of the international law, including the Charter of the United Nations, the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and other relevant UN treaties and conventions, maintain an open and inclusive regional cooperation framework, support ASEAN Centrality in the evolving rules-based regional architecture, uphold multilateralism in jointly responding to regional and global challenges.

Significance

  • India and Indo-Pacific:
    • ASEAN is central to India’s Act East Policy and its vision for a wider Indo-Pacific.
    • The event marked the implementation of the ASEAN-India Joint Statement on Cooperation on ASEAN Outlook on Indo-Pacific (AOIP). 
      • This is important as it will strengthen the ASEAN-India Strategic Partnership.
  • Plan of Action 2021-2025:
    • The ongoing India-ASEAN collaboration is guided by the Plan of Action 2021-2025 which was adopted in 2020.
    • The plan of Action envisages greater cooperation in areas ranging from trade to maritime security and counter-terrorism.
  • Absence of Myanmar:
    • The souring of ASEAN-Myanmar ties were affected beginning with the February 1, 2021 coup that overthrew the government of Aung San Suu Kyi. 

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) 

  • It is a political and economic organization aimed primarily at promoting economic growth and regional stability among its members.
  • It was founded in 1967 by the five South-East Asian nations of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
    • Brunei Darussalam joined in 1984, Vietnam in 1995, Lao PDR and Myanmar in 1997, and Cambodia in 1999, making up to ten Member States of ASEAN.
  • ASEAN Summit is the highest policy-making body in ASEAN comprising the Head of States or Government of ASEAN Member States.
    • Summit is held twice annually.
    • The First ASEAN Summit was held in Bali, Indonesia in 1976.

Importance of ASEAN for India

  • India shares a deep connection with ASEAN and has continued its active engagement in many areas contributing to regional peace and stability, particularly through ASEAN led mechanisms, such as:
    • East Asia Summit.
    • ASEAN Regional Forum.
    • ADMM-Plus. 
      • The ADMM Plus is an annual meeting of Defence Ministers of 10 ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries and eight dialogue partner countries – Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russia and the United States.
  • The India-ASEAN strategic partnership has been strengthened by virtue of flourishing cultural and civilisational links and enhanced people-to-people cooperation. 

 

India’s “Act East Asia” Policy

  • Announced in November 2014 is a diplomatic initiative to promote economic, strategic and cultural relations with the vast Asia-Pacific region at different levels.
  • It involves intensive engagement with Southeast Asian countries in the fields of: 
    • Connectivity, trade, culture, defence and people-to-people-contact at bilateral, regional and multilateral levels.

Significance of East Asia:

  • Eastern countries:
    • The eastern region of Asia consists of the Asian nations, Greater China (Greater China consists of the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan), Japan, Mongolia, North Korea and South Korea.
  • Regional Security: 
    • Considering tension on the Korean Peninsula, South China and in the Taiwan Strait, among others, it is vital for Japan, China and South Korea to maintain a common stance and to share a common concern for security in the East Asian region.
  • Economic benefit: 
    • It represents nearly 50 per cent of the world’s population with 20 percent of global trade, and comprising 16 nations that are on a dynamic path of economic development.
  • Global Implications: 
    • An East Asia community would play a big role in instilling a sense of responsibility in Asian countries and in leading them jointly in contributing to the resolution of global issues.

 

Way Ahead:

  • ASEAN led mechanisms should be regarded as a viable regional architecture platform for the Indo-Pacific region. 
    • India is one of the founding members of the East Asia Summit.
  • ASEAN continues to maintain its central role in the evolving regional architecture in Southeast Asia and its surrounding regions.
    • India should increase its bilateral and multilateral engagements with ASEAN.
  • ASEAN countries need to work to restore the ‘ASEAN centrality and unity’ through the strategic environment of competing interests.
    • India should push for the reconciliation between Myanmar and the ASEAN.
    • The focus must be on emerging challenges to international peace and security.

Delhi Dialogue 

  • It is an annual Track 1.5 forum for discussing politico-security, economic and socio-cultural issues between ASEAN and India. 
  • It was first held in 2009.
  • Delhi Dialogue has emerged as an important forum at which political leaders, policy makers, researchers, academicians, business leaders and media persons converge for brainstorming on a range of issues pertaining to ASEAN-India relations.

Levels of dialouges/diplomcies:

  • Track 1 diplomacy: 
    • It refers to official governmental diplomacy. formal negotiations between nations conducted by professional diplomats. 
  • Track 2 diplomacy:  
    • Practice of “non-governmental, informal and unofficial contacts and activities between private citizens or groups of individuals.
  • Track 1.5 diplomacy:  
    • This include a mix of government officials—who participate in an unofficial capacity—and non-governmental experts, all sitting around the same table. 
  • Track 3 diplomacy: 
    • People to people contacts or dialouges between the states.

 

Source: TH

 
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