India-ASEAN ties poised to scale new heights: Hamid Ansari

Phnom Penh: Asserting that India-ASEAN ties are poised to scale new heights, Vice President Hamid Ansari on Wednesday said India's relationship with Cambodia was a "key element" in its engagement with the key regional grouping as the country moves forward with the Act East policy.

Ansari in his address at the Office of the Council of Ministers said the government has recently set-up a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to attract Indian investments into Cambodia and other CLMV -- Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam countries.

"We hope to launch this new initiative soon and I am confident that in the near future more Indian companies will explore the investment opportunities here," Ansari told the audience which included ministers, top officials and university and school students.

Talking about India-ASEAN ties, Ansari said, "The current economic relationship between India and ASEAN countries presents a multitude of industrial, commercial and investment opportunities."

Noting that CLMV countries among the ASEAN partners are of particular interest to India, Ansari said these countries include some of the fastest growing economies in the region and are primarily agrarian, enjoying a certain degree of macroeconomic stability in recent years, with vast potential for future development.

"This creates strong complementary interests between India and the countries in the region on the basis of a tripod: Commerce, Culture and Connectivity. These are sustained by more frequent political exchanges. The India-ASEAN relations are thus poised to scale new heights," the Vice President asserted.

India has welcomed ASEAN's plans to establish economic and political relationships with neighbouring nations and India and ASEAN have increasingly supported bilateral trade, promoted foreign investment, and strengthened diplomatic relations, he noted.

"My visit to Cambodia underscores the importance India attaches to Cambodia as part of our increasing engagement with the region. Geographically, Cambodia lies at the heart of ASEAN. For us in India, our relationship with Cambodia is a key element of our engagement with ASEAN," the Vice President said, adding that India looks forward to Cambodia's strong support in building bridges and deepening of India's relationship with the entire region.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a political and economic organisation of ten Southeast Asian countries Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.