Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister, left for India on Friday after participating in a successful ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. He was there to attend an annual conference that serves to assess the ASEAN-India partnership.
“Departing Cambodia after a brief but very productive visit,” Dr. Jaishankar wrote on Twitter. See here.
https://twitter.com/DrSJaishankar/status/1555375933456273413
External Affairs Minister, DR. S. Jaishankar arrived in Cambodia on Wednesday to participate in the ministerial meeting of ASEAN.
“Thank PM Hun Sen of Cambodia for receiving me. Conveyed personal greetings of PM @narendramodi. Appreciated his warm words on our covid cooperation. Discussed enhancing our economic, development, defence and cultural partnership. Assured our continued assistance on heritage conservation. Valued his views on regional developments,” Dr. Jaishankar tweeted.
A cultural event took place on the last day of the ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting.
In his first meeting with Ali Sabry, the recently appointed foreign minister of Sri Lanka and reiterated about the India’s commitment to the island country as a dependable friend and a dependable partner in its economic recovery.
Dr. Jaishankar also interacted with his counterparts from Singapore, Brunei, and Indonesia.
“ASEAN-India Meetings provide opportunities to catch up with valued colleagues and friends.” “Continued conversations with FM Retno Marsudi of Indonesia, FM Dato Haji Erywan of Brunei and FM @VivianBala of Singapore,” he said on Twitter. See here.
https://twitter.com/DrSJaishankar/status/1555134212776157184
Dr. Jaishankar discussed several topics, including the Indo-Pacific, COVID-19, and Myanmar issues, with Singapore’s foreign minister, Vivian Balakrishnan, during their meeting. During his conversation with foreign minister Bui Thanh Son, he also pledged to keep the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between India and Vietnam moving forward.
Prior to his meeting with Singapore FM, Jaishankar spoke with Antony Blinken, the US Secretary of State, and Penny Wong, the Australian ambassador.
The External Affairs Minister spoke with Blinken about international affairs and the US-India relationship.
After meeting with Blinken, Dr. Jaishankar had tweeted this;
A warm conversation to start meetings on sidelines of ASEAN Ministerial in Phnom Penh. Discussed the ever strengthening India-US relationship and the global situation with US Secretary of State @SecBlinken. See here.
https://twitter.com/DrSJaishankar/status/1555061952673894400
The discussion between the foreign ministers of India and ASEAN is said to have focused on the overarching developments in the Indo-Pacific region and ways to deepen ties in light of geopolitical developments that include the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
The foreign ministers also discussed the situation in the South China Sea, a resource-rich region that has been witnessing increasing Chinese muscle-flexing.
There is speculation that the meeting also emphasised the importance of adhering to the United Nations Convention for the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) principles in the South China Sea region.
The meeting in Phnom Penh focused heavily on the happenings in Sri Lanka and Myanmar.
The country’s president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, was forced to leave due to widespread protests, which resulted in severe political unrest in Sri Lanka last month. Ranil Wickremesinghe, a veteran politician in Sri Lanka, was sworn in as its new president amid hopefulness for the country’s economic recovery.
The execution by Myanmar’s military government last month of four pro-democracy activists is said to have infuriated western powers.
ASEAN is one of the most significant organisations in the world. Its dialogue partners include India and several other countries, including the United States, Japan, and Australia.
It is essential for India to engage in the region effectively in light of China’s growing assertiveness and its soft power diplomacy through OBOR in the South East Asian Region. The two may explore the relationship’s unexplored areas, particularly energy security, in addition to working toward favourable economic relations.
It is also important for India to maintain a healthy relationship with ASEAN as a whole and with the individual Southeast Asian countries.
