Wen, Singh meet today in Thailand

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday said he will meet with his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabo on the sidelines of the India-Asean and East Asia summits in Thailand.

Mr Singh said in a statement, ahead of his departure from New Delhi to the Thai resort of Hua Hin, that Wen would be one of seven East Asian leaders with whom he would hold bilateral discussions. The meeting between Mr Singh and Mr Wen is expected to take place on Saturday morning.

This is the first high-level interaction between the two countries after diplomatic skirmishes broke out over Beijing statement on Mr Singh���s visit to Arunachal Pradesh. China had also come out against the proposed November visit to Arunachal Pradesh by the Dalai Lama. Mr Singh said India���s enhanced engagement with Asean was at the heart of the ���look east��� policy.

���The conclusion of the India-Asean Trade-in-Goods Agreement in August 2009 is a major first step in our objective of creating an India-Asean Regional Trade and Investment Area. India-Asean trade has grown at a healthy rate and stood at about $48 billion in 2008,��� the prime minister said. He also said that he would inform Asean leaders about the several initiatives that India has taken to qualitatively enhance our partnership in diverse areas of our cooperation.

The 4th East Asia Summit on October 25 will review cooperation in energy, education, finance, avian influenza and national disaster mitigation. The summit will discuss regional and international issues and direction for community building and cooperation. Asia���s response to the global economic slowdown, food security, energy security and climate change will be important issues of discussion.