Prime Minister Narendra Modi will leave here on Thursday for Vientiane in Laos to attend the 21st ASEAN-India Summit and the 19th East Asia Summit (EAS) while President Droupadi Murmu will embark on a week-long three-nation tour of Africa on Sunday to give an impetus to India’s traditional and historic links with the Continent.
During his two-day visit to Vientiane, the PM will also hold bilateral meetings with a number of world leaders on the margins of the summits.
India is marking a decade of the Act East Policy this year. Relations with ASEAN are a central pillar of the Act East Policy and India’s Indo-Pacific vision.
The ASEAN-India Summit will review progress of India-ASEAN relations through New Delhi’s Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and chart the future direction of cooperation.
The East Asia Summit, a premier leaders-led forum that contributes to building an environment of strategic trust in the region, provides an opportunity for leaders of EAS Participating Countries, including India, to exchange views on issues of regional importance.
Two days after the PM returns, President Murmu will leave on her three-nation tour of Algeria, Mauritania and Malawi.
The visit will witness the exchange of MoUs between India and the three African nations in several areas.