Jakarta, February 13 (AseanAll) — ASEAN and India on February 13, 2026 reaffirmed their shared commitment to further advancing the ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) at the 26th Meeting of the ASEAN-India Joint Cooperation Committee (AIJCC), convened at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat.
Both sides took stock of the significant progress achieved in ASEAN-India cooperation across all three pillars of the ASEAN Community and expressed satisfaction with the full and robust implementation of all measures under the Plan of Action (POA) to Implement the ASEAN India Partnership for Peace, Progress and Shared Prosperity (2021-2025) and its Annex, which concluded in December last year. The Meeting recalled the adoption of the POA to Implement the ASEAN India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (2026-2030) in July 2025 and noted 2026 as the first year of implementation, underscoring the importance of sustained, close and forward-looking cooperation in advancing the ASEAN-India CSP over the next five years. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to build on existing initiatives while actively exploring new and emerging areas of cooperation to ensure that the ASEAN‑India CSP remains dynamic, responsive, and future‑oriented amid evolving regional and global developments.
India reaffirmed that ASEAN remains the cornerstone of its Act East Policy and reiterated its steadfast support for ASEAN Community building efforts and ASEAN Centrality in the evolving regional architecture. India reaffirmed its continued constructive role in promoting regional peace, security and stability through active participation in various ASEAN led mechanisms. Both sides looked forward to further enhancing cooperation in the priority areas, including peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR), counterterrorism and transnational crime, defence, and cybersecurity. Following the adoption of the ASEAN-India Joint Statement on Maritime Cooperation in 2022 and the designation of 2026 as the ASEAN India Year of Maritime Cooperation, both sides also looked forward to exploring enhanced collaboration in maritime related areas, reflecting their shared commitment to maritime cooperation and sustainable ocean governance.
Recognising India as one of ASEAN’s largest trading partners and its tenth largest source of foreign direct investment, ASEAN encouraged India to further strengthen trade and investment, including through the prompt conclusion of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) upgrade negotiations, with a view to making AITIGA more effective, user-friendly, and responsive to evolving global and regional challenges. ASEAN also welcomed India’s sustained support for key ASEAN initiatives, including the ASEAN Power Grid and the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA), once concluded, while promoting greater cooperation in digital transformation, digital payments, renewable energy, tourism, the blue economy, agriculture, food security, as well as science and technology.
The Meeting underscored that people‑to‑people exchanges remain a cornerstone of ASEAN‑India relations and encouraged deeper cooperation in areas such as education, culture, youth, media, disaster management, and climate resilience which foster mutual understanding and strengthen the social and cultural foundations of the ASEAN‑India CSP.
ASEAN encouraged India to enhance practical cooperation across the four priority areas under the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific, while supporting the ASEAN Connectivity Strategic Plan, in alignment with the “Connecting the Connectivities” approach and India’s Act East Policy. ASEAN and India also reaffirmed their commitment to deepening engagement with the ASEAN Smart Cities Network, strengthening cooperation under the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Work Plan V, and expanding engagement with ASEAN centres of excellence.
Both sides shared key regional developments and initiatives, with India congratulating Malaysia for its successful ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025 and the Philippines on assuming the ASEAN Chairship in 2026. India also expressed its support for the implementation of the Philippines’ priorities under the theme ‘Navigating Our Future, Together’. Both sides agreed to align future ASEAN-India cooperation with ASEAN 2045: Our Shared Future, including through the effective implementation of the ASEAN-India POA (2026-2030).
With 2027 set to mark the 35th anniversary of ASEAN-India Dialogue Relations, ASEAN and India looked forward to commemorating this milestone through meaningful activities, which will provide an opportunity to reflect on the joint achievements and chart an even more ambitious vision for the future of the partnership.
Permanent Representative of the Philippines to ASEAN, Evangeline T. Ong Jimenez-Ducrocq, and Ambassador of India to ASEAN, Srinivas Gotru, co-chaired the Meeting. Members of the Committee of Permanent Representatives to ASEAN or their representatives, representatives from the ASEAN Secretariat and the Indian Mission to ASEAN.
