India aims to tighten Quad's ASEAN ties as it hosts top diplomats

Foreign ministers meeting comes as U.S.-China tensions loom over Indo-Pacific

"ASEAN is central to India's 'Act East Policy' and its vision for the wider Indo-Pacific," Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi told media recently. (Source photos by Ken Kobayashi and Kosaku Mimura)

KIRAN SHARMA, Nikkei staff writer

June 16, 2022 14:33 JST

Updated on June 16, 2022 14:57 JST

NEW DELHI -- India is hosting foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on Thursday and Friday, as New Delhi seeks to present itself as a steady partner for a bloc torn between the U.S. and China.

Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and his Singaporean counterpart Vivian Balakrishnan are co-chairing the meeting, which marks the 30th anniversary of India-ASEAN dialogue and a decade of strategic partnership. It is the first such conference to be held in New Delhi.