Why PM Narendra Modi's Manila visit for ASEAN summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Manila would be watched for far too many things than simply his meeting with US President Donald Trump and two multi-lateral summits.

 

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in the Philippines to attend the 15th ASEAN-India summit and 12th East Asia summit. But, his Philippines visit is not only about the two summits.
Before leaving for Manila, the capital city of Philippines today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that his visit symbolises India's commitment to deepening ties with the ASEAN member states and the Indo-Pacific region as part of the 'act east policy'.
PM Narendra Modi emphasised that his visit to Manila will give a new boost to India's bilateral relations with the Philippines, and also further strengthen the politico-security, economic and socio-cultural pillars of India's engagement with ASEAN.

WHAT IS ON AGENDA?
This is PM Narendra Modi's first bilateral visit to the Philippines, where apart from participating in the ASEAN-India and East Asia Summits, he would also take part in Special Celebrations of the 50th anniversary of ASEAN, Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Leaders' Meeting and ASEAN Business and Investment Summit.
Narendra Modi would hold a bilateral meeting with Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte and also have interactions with other ASEAN and East Asia Summit Leaders. He would be meeting Indian community in the Philippines besides visiting the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and Mahavir Philippines Foundation Inc (MPFI).
IRRI, through scientific research and development, has developed better quality of rice seed and helped the global community in addressing food scarcity issues.  The Modi government in July this year approved a proposal by the IRRI to set up its South Asia Regional Centre at Varanasi, the Lok Sabha constituency of the prime minister. This will be the first Research Centre by IRRI outside its headquarters in the Philippines.
The MPFI has a special India connection because of its contribution towards distributing free prosthesis 'Jaipur Foot' among the needy amputees. Since its establishment in 1989, MPFI has fitted nearly 15,000 amputees in the Philippines with 'Jaipur Foot'.

WHAT ABOUT ASEAN?
The ASEAN grouping comprises Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. The 10-member grouping ASEAN and India comprises a total population of 1.85 billion people which is one-fourth of the global population.
The combined GDP has been estimated at over 3.8 trillion dollars. Trade between India and ASEAN stood at USD 65.04 billion in 2015-16 and comprises 10.12 per cent of India's total trade with the world.
Apart from the 10 ASEAN Member states, East Asia Summit includes India, China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Russia.

MEETING WITH DONALD TRUMP
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a bilateral meeting tomorrow with US President Donald Trump, who is on a five-nation tour of Asia. The meeting will be held on the sidelines of ASEAN.
The Narendra Modi-Donald Trump meeting is the first one-on-one engagement of the two leaders since Japan proposed to have a quadrilateral alliance comprising India, the US, Japan, and Australia.
Japan's Foreign Minister Taro Kono had indicated last month that a formal proposal for quadrilateral alliance would be made on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit.
In their meeting, Modi and Trump are likely to discuss a host of key issues of mutual interest including the security scenario in the region. Trump on Friday praised India's "astounding" growth after it opened up its economy and also lauded Modi, saying he has been working successfully to bring the vast country and its people together.
Speaking at a gathering of CEOs on the sidelines of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in the Vietnamese city of Danang, Trump cited India as one of the countries in the Indo-Pacific region making strides.

WHAT IS QUADRILATERAL DIPLOMACY?
Reports suggest that if not the heads of India, the US, Japan and Australia, then the officials of these countries would sit down and explore the feasibility of such an alliance in the fast changing global power equation. Japan has categorically said that it favours a dialogue between the four countries to boost strategic partnership.
India has expressed its willingness by stating that it is open to working with like-minded countries on issues that advance its interests. The Trump administration has also said that it is looking at a "working-level" quadrilateral meeting in the near term with India, Japan and Australia.
Narendra Modi's meeting with Donald Trump comes up in the backdrop of growing Chinese assertiveness in the South China Sea and south Asian region. Donald Trump has said it, on a few occasions, that the US favours a larger role for India in the strategically key Indo-Pacific region.
The use of the term "Indo-Pacific" by Trump has led to speculation that it may have something to do with Washington preparing the ground for a revival of the so-called Quadrilateral strategic alliance between the US, Japan, Australia and India to counter China's rise.