Terrorism a dominant theme of discussions in East Asia Summit, says MEA

The Ministry of External Affairs(MEA) on Friday said that issues of terrorism and economic development will be the dominant theme of discussions in the forthcoming 10th East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on November 21, 2015.

"Terrorism is a major issue which has been talked about in summits all over the world, especially after Paris and Beirut and Egypt. I think that will continue to be a dominant theme in these discussions here as well. I also think there will be discussion on ongoing dispute on South China sea and situation on the Korean peninsula", MEA(Secretary East) Anil Wadhwa told ANI in an exclusive interview.

"There are seven or eight declarations which the East Asia Summit would adopt. So the main focus areas are global movements of moderates, the question of maritime cooperation, also issues of violent extremism, tackling health, RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership) between ASEAN and its dialogue partners, which is making good progress," Wadhwa added.

Wadhwa also asserted that economics and development will be on the cards for discussion at the East Asia summit.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that his upcoming visit to Malaysia is aimed at building on trade ties with East Asian nations while the trip to Singapore will focus on attracting investments to India.

The East Asia Summit this year has a special significance as it will mark the the 10th anniversary of the East Asia Summit process. All EAS members including India remain committed to strengthening the East Asia Summit and making it more effective for dealing with current challenges.

At the 13th ASEAN-India Summit, Prime Minister and ASEAN leaders will review ASEAN-India cooperation and discuss its future direction. The leaders will take note of the new Plan of Action (2016-2020) to further enhance ASEAN-India cooperation along the politico-security, economic and socio-cultural pillars. They will also exchange views on regional and international issues of mutual interest.