♤ India became a Sectoral Partner of the ASEAN in 1992, Dialogue Partner in 1996 and Summit Level Partner in 2002.

♤ There are, in total, 30 Dialogue Mechanisms between India and ASEAN, cutting across various sectors.

♤ Mission to ASEAN: India has set up a separate Mission to ASEAN and the EAS in Jakarta in April 2015 with a dedicated Ambassador to strengthen engagement with ASEAN and ASEAN-centric processes.

♤ Delhi Dialogue: India has an annual Track 1.5 event Delhi Dialogue, for discussing politico- security and economic issues between ASEAN and India. Since 2009, India has had nine editions of this event. The 9th edition of Delhi Dialogue was hosted by the MEA on 4-5 July 2017 in New Delhi.

2.3.1. India-ASEAN: Recent Developments

♤ India hosted leaders of the 10 ASEAN nations ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit to mark the 25th Anniversary of ASEAN-India Dialogue Relations in January 2018. This occasion marked the release of Delhi declaration.

♤ In November 2017 PM participated in the 15th ASEAN-India Summit on the sideline of the 31st ASEAN Summit in Manila.

♤ The ASEAN-India connectivity summit in Delhi from December 11-12 2017 saw participation from all the 10 ASEAN countries along with Japan.

♤ The summit also focused on ensuring better digital connectivity as the government looks to align its initiative with ASEAN's Master Plan on Connectivity, 2025, which centres on five strategic areas:

o sustainable infrastructure,

o digital innovation,

o seamless logistics,

o regulatory excellence and

o people’s mobility.

♤ The summit looked at regulatory frameworks to support digital technologies, financing of digital infrastructure and use of technology by MSMEs