NEWS

08 Aug. 2012|News

AIPA President' Visit to India

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Dr. Marzuki Alie as AIPA President led AIPA delegation on five-days-visit to India started on Sunday, 26 July 2012. The delegation includes Surahman Hidayat and Sidarto Danusubroto of the Committee for Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation (BKSAP) of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR), and representatives of parliaments from a number of ASEAN member states such as Mr. Seng Han Thong, Member of Parliament from Singapore; Colonel Winai Sompong, Member of Parliament of Thailand and Dr.Ngo Duc Manh, Member of Parliament of Vietnam, besides Officials and media representatives.

On 31 July, the AIPA delegation held discussions with the Honorable Speaker of Lok Sabha, Meira Kumar;  the Leader of the Opposition, Lok Sabha Smt. Sushma Swaraj; and Minister of State in the External Affairs Ministry H. E. Mr. E. Ahmed. The Speaker of Lok Sabha also hosted a Dinner in the honour of the AIPA Delegation, which was attended by the Members of the Indian Parliament. The AIPA delegation visited Agra on 1 August before returning home.

Discussions during the various calls by the AIPA delegation took appreciative note of the ground covered by the ASEAN-India Dialogue Partnership over the last 20 years and the important role that it has in the continuing stability and development of the region and to global economic growth and prosperity. Both sides took note of the positive developments in the implementation of the ASEAN-India Plan of Action to implement the ASEAN-India Partnership for Peace, Progress and Shared Prosperity 2010-2015 and the relevance of geographic, institutional and people-to-people connectivity to future the relationship. President of AIPA took note of the economic potential of ASEAN and India, which together constitute a market of over 1.8 billion people. He supported the early conclusion of the ASEAN-India FTA on Services & Investment. He also requested India's support to the South East Asia Nuclear Weapons Free Zone and for a Drug Free ASEAN by 2015.

The AIPA delegation also conveyed that ASEAN countries were looking forward to the Commemorative Summit in New Delhi in December 2012. The AIPA delegation requested a more intensive relationship with Members of the Indian Parliament. President of AIPA & Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia conveyed an invitation for India to participate as Observer at the 33rd General Assembly of AIPA on 16-22 September 2012 in Lombok, Indonesia.