India emphasises 'sincere, abiding' commitment for safer, stronger BIMSTEC

India today emphasised its "sincere and abiding" commitment to work with the BIMSTEC member states to make the region safer, stronger and prosperous, ahead of a summit of the regional bloc here tomorrow.

This was stated by Minister of State for External Affairs Gen V K Singh in his address at the 16th BIMSTEC ministerial meeting here in the Nepalese capital.

Singh, who led the Indian delegation during the meeting, said New Delhi accords utmost priority to BIMSTEC as it fulfils India's foreign policy priority of "Neighbourhood First" and "Act East".

With completion of 21 years, BIMSTEC is at a critical juncture and in that regard, Singh reiterated India's sincere and abiding commitment to work with all BIMSTEC member states for a safe, strong and prosperous Bay of Bengal region.

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is a regional grouping comprising Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal.

"BIMSTEC bringing the region together! In his address at the 16th Ministerial meeting, MoS @Gen_VKSingh emphasised on India's sincere and abiding commitment to work with BIMSTEC Member States to make the region safer, stronger and prosperous," MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted.

The two-day BIMSTEC summit will begin tomorrow in Kathmandu. ?