Modi departs for Manila to attend ASEAN summit, likely to meet Trump on Monday
It will be the first meeting between Narendra Modi and Donald Trump following a proposal to have a quadrilateral alliance among India, the US, Japan, and Australia.
india Updated: Nov 12, 2017 08:31 IST
Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday departed for a three-day visit to Philippines, to attend the 15th ASEAN summit and 12th East Asia summit on November 14.
Modi and US President Donald Trump are likely to have a bilateral meeting on Monday on the sidelines of the summit in Manila.
Trump is scheduled to arrive on Sunday as part of his five-nation Asia tour of Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam, and the Philippines.
Official sources said the meeting between Modi and Trump is likely to take place on Monday.
It will be the first meeting between the two leaders following a proposal to have a quadrilateral alliance among India, the US, Japan, and Australia.
The Prime Minister on Saturday said his visit to the Philippines symbolises India’s commitment to continue deepening its ties with Southeast Asia and the Indo-Pacific region.
Modi said that besides the two summits, he would also participate in special celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the formation of the Asean, the proposed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Leaders’ Meeting and an Asean Business and Investment Summit.
RCEP is a proposed free trade agreement between the 10 Asean member states and the six states with which the grouping has free trade pacts - Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand.
“The Asean Business and Investment Summit will boost our close cooperation to further enhance our trade ties with Asean member states, which constitutes a significant 10.85% of our overall trade,” the Prime Minister said.
Stating that he looked forward to connecting with the Indian community in Philippines, Modi said that he would also visit the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and Mahavir Philippines Foundation Inc. (MPFI).
“I am confident that my visit to Manila will give a new boost to India’s bilateral relations with the Philippines and also further strengthen the politico-security, economic and socio-cultural pillars of our engagement with Asean,” the Prime Minister added.