India Asean Ties

The next round of talks for the review meeting of the India-Asean free trade agreement in goods will be held in February next year, an official statement said on Saturday. The fourth round of the negotiations was concluded here this month. The review of AITIGA (Asean India Trade in Goods Agreement) will be a step forward in enhancing trade with the ASEAN region in a sustainable manner, the commerce ministry said. "The next meeting of the AITIGA Joint Committee is scheduled in February 2025 in Jakarta, Indonesia," it said. There are 8 Sub-Committees under the AITIGA Joint Committee to negotiate aspects related to market access, rules of origin, standards and technical regulations, customs procedures, economic and technical cooperation, trade remedies, and legal and institutional provisions. Asean as a group is one of the major trade partners of India with about 11 per cent share in India's global trade. The bilateral trade in 2023-24 was USD 121 billion and reached USD 73 billion

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrived in Vientiane on Wednesday to attend the 11th ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting-Plus (ADMM Plus).He was received by Maj. Gen. Pasith Thiengtham, Deputy Minister of National Defence, Lao PDR at Wattay International Airport.As per official sources, Singh will attend bilateral with three Countries-Malaysia, Laos and China. Later, in the day he will interact with a group of people of the Indian community in Laos.Prior to his departure from Delhi the Defence Minister said, "I'm leaving for Vientiane to attend the 11th ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting Plus (ADMM Plus) in Lao PDR. Various regional & international security Issues will be discussed during the meeting. There would also be separate bilateral meetings with my counterparts from other participating nations. Looking forward to it."Among the many key features of the event, the meeting between Indian Defence Minister with Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun on the sidelines of the summit is an ..

India may seek flexibility in the existing tariff concessions in sectors which are impacted by significant increase in imports, under the free trade agreement (FTA) review with the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), an official said. The ASEAN official team is visiting India for the next round of review negotiations, which will start from November 19-22 here. The ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) was signed in 2009. "We may seek some flexibility in the tariff (or customs duty) concessions that have been given in the agreement. Some of the concessions can be taken back and can be given somewhere else because in some sectors we feel our domestic industry is badly getting hurt. We have domestic injuries in some sectors. We would like to do that in a minimum possible way," the official said. The domestic steel industry has time and again flagged concerns over a significant increase in imports from countries like China and misuse of FTA with ASEAN. In

India and ASEAN are major demographies and their collaboration can be crucial in tackling contemporary issues, ensuring food and health security and addressing political challenges in the shared region like Myanmar, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Friday. Jaishankar's remarks came as he addressed the Eighth Roundtable of ASEAN-India Network of Think-Tanks Navigating a World in Transition: Agenda for ASEAN-India Cooperation. "India and ASEAN are major demographies whose emerging demands can not only support each other but become larger productive forces in the international economy," Jaishankar, who is here on a day-long visit, said. Together, ASEAN and India account for more than a quarter of the world's population, he said. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members include Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. "Our consumer demands and lifestyle choices are themselves major economic

India and ASEAN can work together to create a regional policy framework for green energy transition with increasing usage of small modular nuclear reactors, a senior official of Indian power sector regulator CERC has said. According to Harish Dudani, Member, Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region provides a lot of opportunities for mutual cooperation to make low-carbon energy transition less disruptive. "ASEAN countries, including India, are showing increasing interest in Small Modular Nuclear Reactors (SMRs) as part of their broader strategy to diversify energy sources and meet growing energy demand while reducing carbon emissions," Dudani said at the ongoing Singapore International Energy Week. SMRs can be deployed in smaller, more localised grids, particularly in remote or rural areas where traditional large nuclear reactors are not feasible. This could be a significant advantage for the ASEAN region, where ...

China has been accused of harassment, intimidation and patrolling exclusive economic zones of Asean nations, leading to rising tensions in the South China Sea

PM Modi is scheduled to visit Lao PDR at the invitation of the Prime Minister of Lao PDR to participate in the 21st ASEAN-India Summit and the 19th East Asia Summit later this year

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a two-day visit to Laos beginning Thursday to attend the ASEAN-India Summit and the East Asia Summit where improving connectivity and expanding digital public infrastructure are expected to be the key issues on the table. Modi's visit also commemorates 10 years of the Act East Policy that has seen India build convergences with ASEAN's own outlook for the Indo-Pacific region that has seen China's expansive activities in the South China Sea. Modi is also expected to meet the newly appointed Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who will be attending the East Asia Summit his first overseas visit since assuming office on October 1. Territorial tensions in the South China Sea and the civil war in Myanmar will also be on the table. ASEAN has proposed a peace plan that calls for a ceasefire and mediation among the warring factions in Myanmar. Briefing the media about the prime minister's visit, Jaideep Mazumdar, Secretary (East) in the External .

India on Friday called for addressing the concerns of its domestic industries affected by the existing free trade agreement (FTA) with the 10-nation bloc ASEAN as the two regions negotiate a review of the pact. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has also emphasized the need to rectify the inequitable tariff liberalization under the agreement. Goyal said this during the stock-taking exercise of the progress of review talks for the India-ASEAN free trade agreement in goods (AITIGA) in Laos. All the ministers took note of the progress in negotiations for the review of the agreement. "Minister Goyal in his intervention stressed the need for addressing injury to industries from the existing FTA and the inequitable tariff liberalisation during the review. He also cited India's ongoing efforts of integrating with other economies through FTAs and highlighted the urgency in upgrading AITIGA which otherwise may lead to diversion of bilateral trade to other regions, the commerce ...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will start his bilateral visit to Singapore after his trip to Brunei. Singapore is a key partner in India's 'Act East' policy and in boosting Indo-Pacific engagement

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday held a series of bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Brunei and New Zealand and discussed various aspects of bilateral collaboration, including education and agriculture technology. Jaishankar is in the capital of the Laos People's Democratic Republic to participate in the meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). He held a bilateral meeting with his counterpart from New Zealand, Winston Peters, also the country's deputy prime minister. "Always enjoy meeting DPM & FM @winstonpeters of New Zealand. Discussed education, agriculture technology, Pacific Islands & cricket," Jaishankar said in a post on X. Jaishankar also held a meeting with his counterpart from Brunei, Dato Haji Erywan. The two leaders launched the logo, celebrating 40 years of diplomatic relations between India and Brunei. "Confident that our warm and friendly ties will prosper further," Jaishankar said. He also met Laos' Minister of

Round-III of review meet from July 29 in Jakarta

The bloc seeks liberal product-specific rules in electronics and chemicals

Asean Secretary General Kao Kim Hourn CM is leading the Asean Secretariat delegation on a working visit to India

This is Kao Kim Hourn's first official visit to India since assuming office in January 2023, spanning from February 11 to 15

ASEAN Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim Hourn has said that the 10-member bloc of the Southeast Asian countries wants India to join the landmark Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) for greater market access as he asserted that all partners stand to gain from the inclusive, open and rule-based trade pact. Dr Kao also said that India and ASEAN have been working together across different sectors - from space to investment, to tourism, to the defence sector and counter-terrorism, among others - and advocated expanding such cooperation in new sectors. Talking to a select group of Indian journalists here on Monday evening, Dr Kao said joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) would benefit India as the agreement would provide greater market access. He added that all partners will gain from the inclusive, open and rule-based trade pact. The RCEP is a free trade area (FTA) consisting of 10 ASEAN members (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapo

Modi also called for building a rules-based post-Covid world order and strengthening the voice of the Global South

The Ministerial level meet will also focus on stronger ties with the ASEAN bloc to counter Chinese influence, officials said

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar spoke to Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn on Monday and discussed India-Association of South East Asian Nations relations (ASEAN)

If India misses out on attracting some of the new global trading infrastructure, it could be locked out of several years of growth