Manila, Philippines, July 23 (ANI): External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Thursday held separate meetings with his counterparts from Brunei and Papua New Guinea on the sidelines of the ASEAN-related Foreign Ministers’ Meetings in Manila, discussing bilateral cooperation, technology, development partnerships, and regional issues.
Sharing details of his meeting with Brunei’s Foreign Minister, Prince Abdul Mateen, Jaishankar said in a post on X that the two leaders discussed bilateral cooperation, emerging technologies, and strengthening engagement through ASEAN.
The two ministers also discussed expanding cooperation in areas including artificial intelligence, drones, and digital technologies, with a focus on strengthening bilateral ties in line with India’s Act East Policy.
“A warm meeting with FM Prince Abdul Mateen of Brunei. Congratulated him on assuming his current responsibilities. Conveyed that rapidly changing technology, including AI, drones, digital, has opened new vistas of engagement. Also agreed to advance bilateral agenda in line with India’s Act East Policy and further strengthen our multilateral engagements under ASEAN,” Jaishankar said in his post.
Jaishankar also met Papua New Guinea Foreign Minister Justin W. Tkatchenko to discuss strengthening bilateral ties, including cooperation through the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC).
“Pleasure to meet FM Justin W. Tkatchenko of Papua New Guinea. Spoke about bilateral cooperation, including through the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC). India stands ready to partner with the Pacific Island Countries for their development and capacity-building priorities, while supporting their maritime security,” Jaishankar said in a separate post on X.
Jaishankar is on a two-day visit to Manila, where he attended a series of foreign ministers’ meetings, including the ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, the East Asia Summit (EAS) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) meetings.
He also attended the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, where India, the United States, Japan, and Australia reaffirmed their commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific and their support for ASEAN centrality. (ANI)
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