In a bid to find solutions to emerging and non-traditional challenges, India is working with ASEAN countries to evolve regional security architecture in the Asia Pacific, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said on Thursday. listing out terror financing, arms smuggling, human trafficking, money laundering and cyber crime as some of the major challenges facing the region, she said India and ASEAN had been working to combat them.
"India has been working with ASEAN towards evolving regional security architecture in the Asia Pacific that hinges on emphasising the peaceful settlement of disputes, finding collaborative solutions to emerging and non-traditional challenges, and support for the centrality of ASEAN. Enhancing Maritime Cooperation and Security has been an area of focus for both ASEAN and India. Combating drug abuse and drug trafficking remains a major challenge in the region. Apart from drug-related crimes, the region faces several other forms of trans-national crime, such as terrorism; arms smuggling; human trafficking; sea piracy; money laundering; terrorist financing and cyber crime," Swaraj said in her keynote address of the Rs ASEAN-India Partnership' conference organised by Research and Information System for Developing Countries, a think tank.
She said ASEAN and India have consciously striven to step up cooperation on counter-terrorism, cyber security, anti-piracy and other transnational crimes through various forums to include the East Asia Summit, ASEAN Regional Forum, ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting Plus and Expanded ASEAN Maritime Forum.
Discussing various aspects of India's strategic partnership with the powerful bloc, Swaraj said ASEAN-India trade was back on track after two years of slow growth with an increase of 8 per cent in 2016-17. India is fourth largest trading partner, accounting for 10 per cent of total trade. According to Swaraj, India was actively engaged in Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership negotiations involving ASEAN and its six FTA partners, which, when finalized, would be the largest regional trading arrangement, accounting for about 40 per cent of world trade.
Swaraj mentioned connectivity as a huge enabler for stimulating trade and investment and added that efforts were on to enhance connectivity by land, air and sea to transform the corridors of connectivity into corridors of economic cooperation.
Talking about India's cultural links with some of the ASEAN countries she talked about the influence of Hinduism. "Thailand incorporates significant elements from Hinduism in its architecture, arts, sculpture dance, drama and literature. The Cham temple complex of My Son Wat in Vietnam is dedicated to Bhadreshvara, an incarnation of the lord Shiva. The magnificent Angkor Vat in Cambodia was originally built as a Hindu temple dedicated to the lord Vishnu. The Vat Phou temple in lao PDR, Ananda temple in Bagan, Myanmar and the Borobudur Buddhist temple in Indonesia are examples of the influence of Hindu architectural principles," she said.