Participants to the ASEAN-India Post Ministerial Conferences and Related Meetings  (Photo: baoquocte.vn)

Foreign Ministers of ASEAN and India agreed to enhance comprehensive cooperation in 3 pillars, the focal point being the maritime industry, trade, and investment towards achieving two-way trade turnover of 200 billion USD in 2025. Both sides agreed to boost links in infrastructure and human resources, while expanding cooperation in IT, the digital economy, smart urban development, education, and the person-to-person exchange. ASEAN and Indian leaders reached a consensus to observe 2019 as the ASEAN-India Tourism Year.

Both shared concerns about developments in the East Sea and the militarization activities that are eroding trust and seriously damaging regional peace and stability. The participants insisted on the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security, safety, freedom of navigation and aviation on regional territorial waters. They said that all disputes should be settled via peaceful means, based on international law including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.