PM Modi ends successful ASEAN engagements, departs for India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday departed for India after a series of productive bilateral and multilateral engagements in Manila.

During his three-day visit, the Prime Minister met various world leaders like: United States President Donald Trump, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Australian counterpart Malcolm Turnbull.

Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Modi addressed 15th ASEAN-India Summit and exhorted the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) to intensify cooperation in fighting terrorism.

"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," Prime Minister Modi said.

The Prime Minister assured the ASEAN of India's support in maintaining regional security.

"India's Act East Policy is shaped around the ASEAN, and its centrality in the regional security architecture of the Indo-Pacific region is evident. India assures the ASEAN of its steady support towards achieving a rules-based regional security architecture that best attests to the region's interests and its peaceful development," Prime Minister Modi said.

The Prime Minister also invited the ASEAN leaders to be the chief guests at 2018 Republic Day celebrations.

On Monday, the Prime Minister told the ASEAN Business and Investment summit that his government wants to make India a manufacturing hub.

Exhorting the businessmen to invest in India, the Prime Minister said that most sectors of the Indian economy are open for foreign investment.

Before addressing the summit, Prime Minister Modi also met United States President Donald Trump.

After meeting Trump, he told media, "The relations between India and the US are growing. Our relations go further for future interests of Asia and humanity."

He further added the US and India would come up to the expectations of the world and the US.

The ASEAN is a regional intergovernmental organisation comprising ten Southeast Asian states which promotes Pan-Asianism and intergovernmental cooperation and facilitates economic, political, military, educational and cultural integration amongst its members and Asian states.