Guwahati, Oct 10, 2024, IANS

Guwahati, Oct 10 (IANS) Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Thursday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was welcomed by traditional Assamese Bihu dance in the capacity city of Vientiane. “The culture of Assam reverberates in Lao PDR! On landing in Vientiane, Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji received a warm welcome, which included a Bihu dance and that too by people from Lao PDR. This is indeed a very proud moment for Assam,” the Chief Minister wrote on X. Sonexay Siphandone, his Lao counterpart, invited PM Modi to Vientiane to attend the meetings which would take place on the fringes of the ASEAN summit. Additionally, he will meet one-on-one with the ASEAN state leaders. “The East Asia Summit will offer a chance to discuss the obstacles to Indo-Pacific peace, stability, and prosperity,” PM Modi stated. The Prime Minister added that to assess the state of our all-encompassing strategic partnership and determine the course of our collaboration going forward, he will join the leaders of ASEAN. PM Modi's visit coincides with India commemorating ten years of its "Act East" strategy, which relates to its interactions with nations in Southeast Asia. India has close strategic and trade ties with ASEAN members such as Singapore, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Ten ASEAN countries including the bloc's eight partners - Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Russia, and the US, Timor-Leste as an observer participate in the East Asia Summit, which began in 2005. PM Modi pointed out that the shared heritage of Buddhism and the Ramayana strengthens India's cultural and civilisational linkages with Southeast Asia, especially Laos. He said, “To further strengthen our bilateral ties, I am looking forward to my meetings with the Lao PDR leadership.” In addition to attending Thursday's ASEAN Summit, PM Modi will attend a dinner which his Lao counterpart is hosting for the visiting leaders. During the summit, he is scheduled to have at least two bilateral meetings.