Modi pens op-ed for 27 Asean newspapers in 10 languages

New Delhi: Twenty-seven newspapers in 10 ASEAN countries, leaders of which are guests at Republic Day celebrations in the national capital, carried an op-ed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The op-ed was splashed across 27 newspapers, written in 10 languages.    

The leaders of these 10 nations—President Joko Widodo of Indonesia, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc of Vietnam, Prime Minister Najib Razak of Malaysia, General Prayuth Chan-o-cha of Thailand, Aung San Suu Kyi of Myanmar, Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte, the Sultan of Brunei Haji Hassanal Bolkiah, Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith of Laos and Hun Sen, the Prime Minister of Cambodia–were at Rajpath on Friday, witnessing the Republic Day parade. 

The presence of the ASEAN leaders was unprecedented and reflective of India’s stature as a major power in the region, where China has been trying to expand its influence. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had invited the ASEAN leaders for the India-ASEAN Commemorative Summit and to attend the Republic Day celebrations as chief guests.

On Thursday, one individual from each of the 10 ASEAN nations was named for the Padma Award. The ASEAN region along with India has a combined population of 1.85 billion people, which is one fourth of the global population, and their combined GDP has been estimated at over $3.8 trillion. Investment from ASEAN to India has been over $70 billion in the last 17 years accounting for more than 17 per cent of India’s total FDI. India’s investment in ASEAN during the same period has been more than $40 billion.