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The 21st ASEAN-India Summit took place in Vientiane, Lao PDR, on 10 October 2024. This summit coincided with the 10th anniversary of India’s Act East Policy. Prime Minister Narendra Modi joined ASEAN leaders to assess the progress of the ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and set the course for future collaboration.

In his address, Prime Minister Modi reaffirmed India's strong support for ASEAN Unity, ASEAN Centrality, and the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific. Referring to the 21st century as the “Asian century,” he emphasized the pivotal role of India-ASEAN relations in shaping Asia’s future. He highlighted the success of India’s Act East Policy, noting that in the last decade, trade between India and ASEAN had doubled to over USD 130 billion, with ASEAN becoming one of India’s top trade and investment partners. He also pointed out direct flight connections with seven ASEAN countries, advancements in Fin-tech collaborations, and efforts to restore shared cultural heritage in five ASEAN nations. PM Modi also stressed the importance of completing the review of the ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement (AITIGA) promptly to unlock greater economic potential. He spoke about the progress made in the India-ASEAN knowledge partnership, particularly through scholarships for ASEAN students at Nalanda University.

In line with the summit’s theme of ‘Enhancing Connectivity and Resilience", PM Modi announced a 10-point plan, which includes:

• Celebrating 2025 as the ASEAN-India Year of Tourism, with USD 5 million allocated for joint initiatives.
• Marking a decade of the Act East Policy through people-centric activities like a Youth Summit, Start-up Festival, Hackathon, Music Festival, ASEAN-India Network of Think Tanks, and Delhi Dialogue.
• Organizing an ASEAN-India Women Scientists Conclave under the ASEAN-India Science and Technology Development Fund.
• Doubling scholarships at Nalanda University and offering new scholarships for ASEAN students at Indian agricultural universities.
• Reviewing the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement by 2025.
• Enhancing disaster resilience, with India contributing USD 5 million.
• Initiating a new Health Ministers’ track for building health resilience.
• Establishing a regular ASEAN-India Cyber Policy Dialogue to strengthen digital and cyber resilience.
• Hosting a workshop on Green Hydrogen.
• Inviting ASEAN leaders to join the ‘Plant a Tree for Mother’ campaign to promote climate resilience.

During the summit, leaders agreed to develop a new ASEAN-India Plan of Action (2026-2030) to guide future cooperation and adopted two joint statements:

• Joint Statement on Strengthening ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for Peace, Stability, and Prosperity in the Indo-Pacific, highlighting the role of India’s Act East Policy in advancing the ASEAN-India relationship.
• ASEAN-India Joint Statement on Advancing Digital Transformation, recognizing India’s leadership in digital transformation and embracing a partnership in digital public infrastructure.

Prime Minister Modi expressed his gratitude to the Prime Minister of Laos for successfully hosting the summit and to Singapore for its role as Country Coordinator over the past three years. He looked forward to working with the Philippines, the new Country Coordinator for India.

ABOUT Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

• ASEAN is a political and economic organization focused on fostering economic growth and regional stability among its member countries.
• The member states include Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
• ASEAN was founded in 1967 in Bangkok, Thailand, with the signing of the ASEAN Declaration (Bangkok Declaration) by its original members: Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.  Brunei Darussalam joined in 1984, followed by Vietnam in 1995, Lao PDR and Myanmar in 1997, and Cambodia in 1999.

 ASEAN Summit:

• This is ASEAN’s highest decision-making body, consisting of the heads of state or government of member nations. The summit is held twice a year.
• The first ASEAN Summit took place in 1976 in Bali, Indonesia.