India will be represented by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, who would also participate in the 10th ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting, the 2nd East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers Meeting, Minintry of External Affairs said here.
"India attaches importance to the ARF as a forum for constructive dialogue on political and security cooperation in the region with the ASEAN countries playing a central role in the process," the ministry has said in a statement.
While the ASEAN-India meeting, an annual feature, will take stock of the ASEAN-India partnership and will deliberate on its future direction, EAS Foreign Ministers would discuss cooperation in the five core areas of education, energy, finance, disaster management and pandemics as well as connectivity and further economic partnership between the member countries, the MEA said.
India became a Sectoral Partner of ASEAN in 1992 and a Dialogue Partner in 1996 and the relationship was upgraded in 2002 to the level of an Annual Summit Level Partnership. Nine ASEAN-India Summits have been held since then.
This year the 10th ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers Meeting acquires greater significance as India would be hosting a Special ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit in December 20-21, 2012 to mark twenty years of the Relationship and 10 years of the Summit level Partnership, the MEA said, adding a series of events are also planned in the run-up to the Commemorative Summit.
Noting that India has been part of the East Asia process since 2005, as a founding member, the ministry said, "EAS Foreign Ministers would discuss cooperation in the five core areas of education, energy, finance, disaster management and pandemics as well as connectivity and further economic partnership between the member countries."
Regional and international issues of concern and the preparation for the 7th East Asia Summit, which is to be held in Phnom Penh in November this year, would also be discussed, it added.
