LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.388
TO BE ANSWERED ON 12.12.2018
ROLE OF ASEAN IN INDIAN OCEAN
388. SHRI RAM MOHAN NAIDU KINJARAPU:
Will the Minister of External Affairs be pleased to state:
(a) whether the Indian Ocean region is strategically important for India and if so, the details thereof;
(b) the role of ASEAN countries in India’s Strategic Vision on Indian Ocean; and
(c) the extent to which the partnership with ASEAN has helped the country?
ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
[GEN. (DR) V. K. SINGH (RETD)]
(a) Indian Ocean is an important trade and energy waterway, carrying half the world’s container shipment, one-third of its bulk cargo traffic and two thirds of oil shipments. More than 90% of India’s trade goes through the Indian Ocean. Relations with countries
in the Indian Ocean Region and nurturing a climate of peace and stability are an important priority of India’s foreign policy. The acronym ‘SAGAR’ – Security And Growth for All in the Region espoused by our Prime Minister succinctly outlines our vision for
the region with collaboration as its backbone. India is an active development partner of the countries in the Indian Ocean Region and is involved in various projects in these countries.
(b) In his keynote Address at Shangri La Dialogue on June 01, 2018, the Prime Minister had underlined that the ten countries of South East Asia connect the two great oceans viz. the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean in both the geographical and civilizational
sense and are central to India’s Act East Policy. In fact, ASEAN’s centrality and unity lies at the heart of our concept of Indo-Pacific Region.
(c) Since 1992, India-ASEAN partnership has evolved from sectoral dialogue to strategic partnership in 2012. Today, India has thirty sectoral dialogue mechanisms and seven ministerial-level interactions, in addition to the annual Summit meeting. We have made
excellent progress in implementing the objectives of the India-ASEAN Partnership for Peace, Progress and Shared Prosperity, through five year plans of action. India’s trade with ASEAN has grown 25 times over 25 years. In 2017-18, India’s total trade with ASEAN
was US$ 81.33 billion which is 10.57% of India’s overall trade. Investment flows are also substantial both ways. FDI inflows into India from ASEAN between April 2000 to March 2018 was about US$ 68.91 billion which is approximately 18.28% of investment flow
into India since 2000.
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