Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Laos on Thursday for a two-day visit to participate in the ASEAN-India and East Asia summits, aiming to strengthen ties with member countries. His visit comes at the invitation of Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone.

Upon his arrival in Vientiane, Modi received a ceremonial Guard of Honour, as noted by External Affairs Ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal in a post on X. He was greeted at the airport by Vilayvong Bouddakham, Laos’ Minister of Home Affairs.

During his trip, Modi will attend the 21st ASEAN-India Summit and the 19th East Asia Summit, with Laos currently serving as the ASEAN chair. In his departure statement, Modi highlighted that this year marks a decade since India launched its Act East policy. He expressed his intention to collaborate with ASEAN leaders to assess the progress of their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and to define future cooperation strategies.

The East Asia Summit will serve as a platform to discuss challenges to peace, stability, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region. Modi emphasized India’s strong cultural and historical connections with the region, particularly with the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, rooted in shared Buddhist and Ramayana heritage.

He expressed eagerness for meetings with Lao leadership to enhance bilateral relations, noting, “This is a significant year as we celebrate a decade of our Act East Policy, which has brought considerable benefits to our nation. There will also be numerous bilateral meetings and interactions with world leaders during this visit.”

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Founded in 1967, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) includes Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, India, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Brunei Darussalam. The East Asia Summit consists of these 10 ASEAN countries along with eight partners: Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Russia, and the United States. Timor-Leste holds observer status at the EAS.

With inputs from PTI