He also said that his country would continue to talk about the Kashmir issue "through channels that are acceptable" and prayed that "the issue is amicably resolved".
By hosting the 10 ASEAN leaders on Republic Day, India amply demonstrated that ASEAN is a central pillar of its Act East policy. But is India 'central' for ASEAN, asks Dr Rahul Mishra.
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC News) on Friday said Trudeau described the meeting as a "brief exchange" when the two leaders met during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Vientiane, Laos held on Thursday.
'What India needs to do is to re-build those cultural links in a way it didn't.' 'Clearly, India needs to wake up and spend more time on ASEAN.'
She also addressed the Indian Community at a reception held in her honour in Jakarta.
'Trump's aggressive stance towards China and preference for military posturing could shift the Quad's balance towards overt militarisation.'
'This market for diesel starts at around Rs 6.3 lakh and goes up to Rs 7 lakh, and with Saathi we have our usual price set at Rs 6.5 lakh, so we are slightly on the lower side with a superior product.'
Union Home Minister Amit Shah will attend the funeral of industrialist Ratan Tata in Mumbai on Thursday, sources said on Thursday.
Take the Rediff Business Quiz and see how much you know about this important regional group.
From the outcome of the general elections and then Union Budget to tepid corporate earnings in the September 2024 quarter (Q2-FY25), sticky inflation and Reserve Bank of India's stance on interest rates, extreme weather conditions, Indian stock markets have braved it all in calendar year 2024.
The agreement on services, if ratified by all member countries, could prove to be a game changer for Indian professionals in education, healthcare & IT.
On the exports front, Bajaj is under pressure in Bangladesh and Africa. On the domestic front, it could ride improvement in rural demand and new launches but it also has to cope with competitive intensity and a high base. The management projects 7-8 per cent volume growth in domestic 2W in financial year 2025 (FY25) with moderation in H2FY25 due to a high base Y-o-Y.
Hectic parleys through out the year led to finalisation of the long-awaited India-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement on services and investment during the 20th India-ASEAN Commemorative Summit held in New Delhi at the end of the year.
India-ASEAN Summit, scheduled for December 17 in Thailand, has been postponed as crisis-ridden South-East Asian country is unable to host the meet.
After a robust 2023, foreign investors significantly scaled back their investments in Indian equities in 2024, with net inflows amounting to over Rs 5,000 crore, as elevated domestic valuations, coupled with geopolitical uncertainties prompted investors to adopt a more cautious stance. Looking ahead to 2025, FPI flows into Indian equities could see a recovery, supported by a cyclical upswing in corporate earnings, particularly in domestic-oriented sectors like capital goods, manufacturing, and infrastructure, Vinit Bolinjkar, head of research, Ventura Securities, said.
'A man who brought about the greatest set of economic reforms in the country, who changed the course of Indian history, cannot be considered weak.' 'A man who fought for nuclear reforms even though his majority in Parliament was threatened, he cannot be considered weak.'
India-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement talks are in troubled waters with Asean insisting on New Delhi to eliminate its big list of negative items, contrary to the stand taken by the former.
The 25th anniversary of ASEAN-India Dialogue Relations is being marked. And invitations were sent by the Indian government to all ASEAN leaders for the Republic Day function.
As India seeks to deepen its engagement with the 10-nation bloc of small and medium economies, Modi said both India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are keen to enhance their cooperation in advancing balance, peace and stability in the region.
As a leader, he was ambitious, not for himself but for India and its people. His was not the short-term election cycle calculation of individual political gain. His was a practical vision of how to better the lives of his fellow citizens, asserts Ambassador Shivshankar Menon, who served as foreign secretary and national security advisor when Dr Singh was prime minister.
India and ASEAN have relations "free from contests and claims" and believe in sovereign equality of all nations irrespective of size, and support for free and open pathways of commerce and engagement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote in his column.
Government officials said the Asean FTA, as well as a similar pact with South Korea involving free trade of goods, services and investment, could be signed on the sidelines of the summit of Asean nations, scheduled in October this year. The India-South Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement is also ready for signing, sources added.
India and China have agreed to work towards a "roadmap" for rebuilding mutual trust following the border standoff in eastern Ladakh, according to a statement from the Indian Defence Ministry. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met with his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun in Vientiane, Laos, on the sidelines of a regional security conclave. Singh called for drawing lessons from the "unfortunate border clashes" of 2020 and emphasized the need for cooperation rather than conflict. Both sides agreed to work towards a roadmap for rebuilding mutual trust and understanding, and a meeting of the Special Representatives and Secretary-Vice Minister mechanism will also take place soon.
He suggested evolving specific plans for cooperation with the 10-memeber grouping in key areas of maritime security, counter-piracy and humanitarian and disaster relief.
The Jaishankar-Wang talks came amid the dragging border row in eastern Ladakh that entered its fifth year in May.
The Centre said on Wednesday it had made a good offer for the proposed Free Trade Agreement with the Association of South East Asian Nation and is awaiting ASEAN's reactions to it.
'Geopolitics will be the most important driver of financial markets in 2025.'
In a strong message to China, India and ASEAN on Thursday called for a "full and effective" implementation of the understanding between the parties involved in the South China Sea dispute, while stressing on maritime security and freedom of navigation in the critical sea lanes.
Observing that India-ASEAN ties were at an 'exciting stage', Singh said the two sides had framed a new paradigm by elevating the relationship to a strategic partnership and by concluding negotiations on free trade agreement in services and investment.
India will make a strong pitch for new initiatives with ASEAN countries to collectively respond to challenges thrown up by the global economic meltdown and climate change during the two day India-ASEAN and East Asia Summits beginning in Thailand tomorrow.
The Summit comes at a time when China is flexing its muscle to tighten its grip over the disputed South China Sea.
The Asean secretariat hopes the meet may be able to iron out existing wrinkles raised by India. Since there had been no significant progress on the matter over the past two years on most issues, New Delhi is yet to decide on the invite.
Signing of the two pacts -- FTA in services and investments -- were scheduled during the India-ASEAN Economic Ministers meeting in Myanmar last week. But the meeting was postponed as Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was not able to attend the meet due to domestic compulsions.
Mr Modi has indicated he will carry on, and intensify, India's 'Look East' policy. But this start is hardly inspiring.
He stressed that reform for him was just a way station on the long journey to the destination and the destination is the transformation of India.
Even as the high inflation figure for October has ruled out any possibility of a rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) monetary policy committee (MPC) in December, a rate cut in February also looks uncertain due to global uncertainties. Economists told Business Standard that unless domestic growth slows markedly, the outlook on rate cut remains unclear. India's headline inflation touched a 14-month high of 6.2 per cent in October, breaching the MPC's upper tolerance band of 6 per cent.
