New Delhi (India): Asserting that India’s Act East policy is a guiding partner and helped in the larger Indo-Pacific approach, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said that from the Indian perspective, Vietnam is a key partner in both ASEAN and Indo-Pacific. Speaking at the celebrations of the 5th anniversary of the India-Vietnam comprehensive strategic partnership, Jaishakar highlighted that both countries have a substantial agenda in process, whether it is commerce, connectivity or culture. “India’s Act East policy has been the guiding principle of our engagement with ASEAN partners and Vietnam is no exception. From the Indian perspective, Vietnam is a key partner both in ASEAN and Indo-Pacific. We already have a substantial agenda on the way whether it is commerce, connectivity or culture,” Jaishankar said. Noting that the political and defence cooperation between India and Vietnam has been growing steadily, the Foreign Minister said: “The visit of Vietnam delegation today led by his President Vuong Dinh Hue only underscore that how much we can do with greater ambition and higher commitment.” Jaishakar also said that as a political and security partners India and Vietnam have converging interests in a multipolar and rebalancing world. “We have been supporting each other’s objectives whether in ASEAN led forums or global platforms. Our cooperation in the UN security council this year has been exemplary, our shared respect for the international laws including clause 1982 and a rule-based order, there is a strong commonality,” he said. On Thursday, a Parliamentary delegation led by the Chairman of the National Assembly (Parliament) of Vietnam, Vuong Dinh Hue, called on Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. Noting that the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Vietnam in 2016 and the virtual summit between the Prime Ministers of the two countries in December 2020 has given a new direction to India-Vietnam relations, Birla expressed satisfaction that from political exchanges to the fields of defence, trade, commerce and culture bilateral relations have been further strengthened.
