Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 26, addressed the Association of South East Asian Nations(ASEAN) Summit virtually, being held at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. PM Modi congratulated the Prime Minister of Malaysia Anwar Ibrahim for successfully chairing the Summit and reciprocated India’s complete support to realize the ASEAN goals and agenda. The theme of the current ASEAN summit is “Inclusivity and Sustainability”.
Prime Minister hailed ASEAN multilateral forum as a key pillar of India’s Act East Policy. He also stressed the geopolitical and economic importance of ASEAN and India in securing the aspirations of the current world order and in navigating the challenges of the 21st century geopolitics.
21st century is the century of India and ASEAN
“India and Asean together represent almost a quarter of the world’s population. We do not just share geography; we are also connected by deep historical ties and shared values. We are fellow travelers of the Global South,” PM Modi affirmed. Given this paramount importance of India in the geopolitical landscape, PM Modi reiterated New Delhi’s support for digital inclusion, food security, health, green energy, science & technology, cyber security, supply chain resilience, disaster response, nurturing the potential of blue economy etc. in the ASEAN region, Global South and beyond.
Infact, similar to India, ASEAN nations are also a key maritime power, thus helps to champion free, open, inclusive and rule-based Indo-pacific. To realize this goal, Prime Minister Modi declared the year of 2026 as “Year of ASEAN-India Maritime Cooperation”. Prime Minister also asserted that the ASEAN community’s ‘Vision 2045’ will align with India’s dream of Viksit Bharat 2047. Thus, both India and ASEAN are capable of creating a better world for humanity.
“India and Asean not only share trade and geography but also cultural relations. ASEAN is the main pillar of India’s Act East Policy. India has always supported Asean centrality and its outlook on the Indo-Pacific. During these times of uncertainty, the India-Asean Comprehensive Strategic Partnership has continuously grown. Our strong partnership is emerging as the basis for global stability and development”, PM Modi further exclaimed.
PM Modi also stressed the importance for the world-nations to echo the aspirations of the Global South, as they comprise the world’s largest and emerging economies. ASEAN is indeed an integral and pivotal part of the Global South. In this backdrop, transforming and empowering ASEAN and the Global South at large will help to transform and prosper the world.
My remarks during the ASEAN-India Summit, which is being held in Malaysia. https://t.co/87TT0RKY8x
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 26, 2025
ASEAN is an intergovernmental forum comprising the nations of Southeast Asia. It was established in 1967 and comprises 10 Southeast Asian economies as permanent members. It includes Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia.
India’s formal engagement with ASEAN commenced in 1992 and it was elevated to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2022. India-ASEAN bilateral trade today stands at more than USD 120 billion, comprising 11 per cent of India’s total global trade. ASEAN is also the only grouping with which India has a full-fledged Free Trade Agreement(FTA).
India-ASEAN partnership is thus multi-sectoral and comprehensive in nature comprising trade, tourism, maritime security and people-to-people ties. India is thus further resolved to strengthen and uplift this special and strategic partnership for the sake of mutual benefit and growth.
