Addressing the 15th ASEAN-India Summit in Manila, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday invited leaders of the ASEAN as chief guests at India’s 69th Republic Day celebrations.
“The befitting theme of ‘shared values, common destiny’ for our 25th-anniversary celebrations has been jointly celebrated with a number of commemorative activities. I look forward to a befitting culmination of the commemorative year and receiving you at the India-ASEAN special commemorative summit on 25 January 2018 in New Delhi. The 1.25 billion people of India are keen to welcome the ASEAN leaders as our chief guests at India’s 69th Republic Day celebrations. I am committed to working with you to realise our common destiny,” said PM Modi in an address at the annual gathering of ASEAN leaders.
PM Modi said that the time had come to unite and think about mitigating terrorism.
“We have suffered due to the menace of terror. The time has come for us to unite and think about mitigating terrorism,” Modi said.
"We have individually strived very hard to fight terrorism and violent extremism. It is time that we jointly address this challenge by intensifying cooperation in this crucial area," he added.
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Earlier in the day, PM Modi reiterated India’s commitment to work with ASEAN nations to address the political, security and economic issues of the region.
"We look forward to the East Asia Summit attaining greater salience in years to come. I reiterate my commitment to work with you to address the political, security and economic issues of the region," PM Modi said.
Modi began the day by meeting leaders of five countries, including Japan and Australia.
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This year marks the 25th year of the India-ASEAN dialogue partnership and the golden jubilee of the formation of the ASEAN regional bloc.
The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
