Last Updated: September 07, 2023, 12:30 IST
Prime Minister Narendra Modi listens as Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo (not pictured) delivers opening remarks during a plenary session of the ASEAN-India Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia, September 7, 2023. (Reuters)
Prime Minister Modi opens Indian embassy in Timor-Leste, reaffirms India’s commitment to ASEAN and the Indo-Pacific at ASEAN-India Summit.
Acting in line with India’s Act East policy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Thursday the opening of the Indian embassy in the Southeast Asian country of Timor-Leste. In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the decision is a reflection of the importance India attaches to ASEAN. This decision was warmly welcomed by Timor Leste and other ASEAN members, it added.
“Act East in action – Delhi to Dili! At the ASEAN-India Summit in Jakarta, PM @narendramodi announces decision to open our Embassy in Dili, Timor-Leste,” MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in a post on X after Modi’s announcement.
The decision was announced during PM Modi’s short visit to Indonesia to attend the ASEAN-India and the East Asia summits. Given that the G20 summit follows shortly after the ASEAN Summits, Modi immediately departed for Delhi after the meetings in Jakarta.
Earlier today, PM Modi received a warm ceremonial welcome at the Jakarta International Airport. He was also greeted by members of the Indian diaspora at his hotel. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is considered one of the most influential groupings in the region, and India and several other countries including the US, China, Japan and Australia are its dialogue partners.
During the annual ASEAN-India summit, PM Modi called for building a rules-based post-COVID world order and strengthening the voice of the Global South. He also underlined the need to ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific. India supports the ASEAN outlook on Indo-Pacific, Modi told the leaders of the grouping.
The prime minister described ASEAN as the epicentre of growth, saying it plays a crucial role in global development. “The 21st century is Asia’s century. It is a century of all of us,” he said. It will be mutually beneficial for all of us to develop a rules-based post-Covid world order as well as efforts by all (Sabka Prayas) for human welfare, Modi said.
ASEAN is the central pillar of India’s Act East policy, he added. The prime minister also noted that the ASEAN-India partnership has entered its fourth decade. The grouping occupies a prominent place in India’s Indo-Pacific initiative, he said.
