Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: Putting to rest speculations on a possible meeting with US President Donald Trump, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has decided to skip the forthcoming summit of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the media reported on Thursday.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will likely attend the three-day event, scheduled from October 26 to 28.
PM Modi will not travel to Kuala Lumpur to attend the 47th ASEAN Summit but will participate in it virtually, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on Thursday.
“He (Modi) informed me that he will attend virtually due to the ongoing Deepavali celebrations in India at that time. I respect his decision and extended my greetings for a happy Deepavali to him and the entire people of India,” Ibrahim posted on social media platform ‘X’, giving details of his call with the Indian PM on Wednesday night.
PM Modi also confirmed his virtual participation in the Summit in a ‘X’ post on Thursday morning: “Had a warm conversation with my dear friend, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia. Congratulated him on Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship and conveyed best wishes for the success of the upcoming Summits. Look forward to joining the ASEAN-India Summit virtually, and to further deepening of the ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.”
As Trump is travelling to Kuala Lumpur for the meeting on Sunday, there were expectations that PM Modi might have a one-on-one meeting with him on the sidelines of the event to sort out lingering tensions around tariffs and India’s purchase of Russian oil.
“Malaysia will remain committed to strengthening Malaysia–India relations and further enhancing ASEAN–India cooperation towards a more peaceful and prosperous region,” Ibrahim said in his post.
At the summit, India and the ASEAN are expected to acknowledge the ongoing review of the India-ASEAN free trade agreement that is skewed heavily in the ASEAN’s favour and talk about its early conclusion, keeping in mind the year-end goalpost.
This will only be the second time since becoming PM in 2014 that Modi will skip this important gathering. In 2022, he had sent then-Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar to Cambodia.
In September also, PM Modi did not attend the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)’s annual gathering in New York.
Meanwhile, geostrategist Brahma Chellaney on Thursday said PM Modi’s decision to skip the ASEAN summit will be seen as a calculated diplomatic move amid ongoing trade tensions between the two countries.
“Modi’s decision to skip the Trump-attended ASEAN summit will be read as a deliberate move to keep his distance from the mercurial U.S. President, who has kept up the squeeze on India with high tariffs and secondary sanctions,” Chellaney wrote on X.
“Modi likely prefers to meet Trump only once a trade deal is in hand — not before,” he added.
Chellaney’s comments came after reports confirmed that the Prime Minister is unlikely to travel to Malaysia for the ASEAN meetings due to scheduling issues.
The ASEAN-India dialogue partnership began in 1992 and was elevated to a strategic partnership in 2012. The grouping comprises t10 Southeast Asian nations – Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia.
India had also considered an accompanying visit to Cambodia, which now stands postponed following the decision not to travel to Malaysia.
The upcoming ASEAN meet comes at a time when India-US relations are under strain, with Washington doubling tariffs on Indian goods to 50 percent and imposing additional duties linked to India’s Russian oil imports.