Why in news?
- The fourth trilateral between Foreign Secretaries of India, Japan and Australia was recently held in Delhi.
- Amid growing convergences, the countries have agreed to greater collaboration on maritime security and also reached out to ASEAN.
What were discussed in the meet?
- Three sides resolved for greater collaboration on maritime security, counter terrorism and disaster response capabilities.
- In a perceived jibe at China, the importance of peace, democracy, economic growth and a rule-based order was stressed.
- Also, commitment to regional connectivity, project transparency, financing, environmental & labour standards were reiterated.
- A statement underlining ASEAN’s centrality in the political and security architecture of the Indo-Pacific region was also made.
- This further indicated the possibility of the trilateral grouping also co-operating with East Asian nations in the security domain.
How is India’s ASEAN outreach shaping up?
- India would be soon hosting a commemorative ASEAN-India summit in Delhi.
- The theme of the engagement is expected to be ‘3Cs’ – “Commerce, Connectivity & Culture”.
- Also, all 10 ASEAN-nation leaders will be the chief guests at the coming Republic Day parade.
Source: The Hindu
