PM leaves for Brunei, Indonesia

The East Asia Summit, he described as the "foremost forum for promoting peace, stability and prosperity in the dynamic Asia Pacific region".



"Given our vital stakes in the region, India has been closely involved in the evolution of an open, balanced and inclusive regional architecture, on the basis of the centrality of the ASEAN".

He said "India sees the East Asia Summit as a springboard to regional cooperation and integration and is participating in the negotiations for a Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership among the ASEAN and its FTA partners, which will help create an economic community in the region".

"The Summit has been highly supportive of India's initiative for the revival of the Nalanda University, which is slated to begin academic programmes next year. On the margins of the East Asia Summit, I will have the opportunity to meet other world leaders".

India's ties with Indonesia, an important bilateral partner, are "an essential part of India's integration with the broader region", he said.

He said it will be "my effort to maintain the momentum in our comprehensive relations generated by the visit of President Yudhoyono to India as the Chief Guest at our Republic Day in 2011 and create an institutional framework to further enhance the content of our cooperation in the years ahead".

"My visits to Brunei Darussalam and Indonesia will further intensify our engagement to our East, which has been at the forefront of our foreign policy, and contribute to peace, prosperity and stability in the Asia Pacific," the prime minister said.