ASEAN-India Summit: PM Modi bats for open and free Indo-Pacific at East Asia Meet
Asia Summit on Thursday that «the need of the hour is an Indo-Pacific where international law, including UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea), applies equally to all countries, where there is freedom of navigation and overflight, and where there is unimpeded lawful commerce for the benefit of all».
He also addressed the India-Asean Summit in Jakarta, where he unveiled a 12-point plan across sectors ranging from connectivity to digital public infrastructure (DPI) and counter-terrorism. "India believes that the Code of Conduct should be effective for the South China Sea, be UNCLOS compliant and, in this, the interests of those countries which are not part of the discussions should also be kept in mind," the PM said.
At the East Asia Summit, the PM pitched for everyone's commitment and joint efforts to strengthen the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries against the backdrop of China's increasing military assertiveness in the South China Sea.
He said all countries in the region have an interest in peace, security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific.
His comments came days after a number of Asean member countries such as Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines reacted sharply to China's territorial claim over the South China Sea in its latest edition of the «standard map of China».
On August 28, China released the 2023 edition of the «standard map of China», showing Taiwan, the South China Sea, Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin as Chinese territories. India dismissed the «map» and lodged a strong protest with China over it.
The 12-point plan unveiled by the PM at India-Asean summit proposes establishing multi-modal connectivity and an economic corridor that links India, Southeast Asia, West
