Indian ambassador to ASEAN Srinivas Gotru said India supports freedom of navigation in the South China Sea. He also said Myanmar should not be isolated. "We have advocated that it should not be isolated," he said. These remarks came as Prime Minister Narendra Modi travels to Manila for summits.
India's ASEAN envoy Srinivas Gotru discusses South China Sea navigation, Myanmar engagement and expanding India-ASEAN ties ahead of the Manila summit.
India's Ambassador to ASEAN has stressed New Delhi's interest in freedom of navigation in the South China Sea and its long-standing view that Myanmar should not be isolated, while underlining the broader importance of deepening India-ASEAN ties as leaders prepare to meet in Manila.
Speaking to WION's Sidhant Sibal, Ambassador Srinivas Gotru said India is not a party to the South China Sea territorial disputes but has a clear stake in the waters remaining open. "It is one of the critical sea lanes as far as the world is concerned," he said. "Our interest, along with most of the international community, is to ensure that there is access and there is freedom of navigation." He added that any Code of Conduct under discussion "should be consistent with international law, and it should not prejudice the rights of parties which are not in the region or parties to the dispute."
On Myanmar, Ambassador Gotru said India has consistently advocated against isolation. As an immediate neighbour with a long shared border and historical links, New Delhi maintains a strong bilateral relationship that exists independently of ASEAN. "Our relationship also stands quite strong on the bilateral front. It's not just through ASEAN," he said. A high-level visit from Myanmar to Delhi earlier this year had advanced discussions, and India supports ASEAN's efforts to restore normalcy while continuing its own engagement. "We have advocated that it should not be isolated. That remains our focus."
Remarks come as Prime Minister Narendra Modi travels to Manila for the 23rd ASEAN-India Summit and the 21st East Asia Summit. The Indian ambassador described the annual leader-level meetings as important for resolving issues and building momentum.
"When the leaders meet on an annual basis, a lot of issues get resolved. The relationship gets a lot of momentum," he said.
He highlighted the scale of the partnership. ASEAN, now an 11-member grouping that includes Timor-Leste, is a roughly $4 trillion economy of 700 million people "right at the doorsteps of India." India shares a land border with Myanmar and maritime boundaries with Indonesia and Thailand, making it a natural neighbour to a young and dynamic region. Trade and investment links are already significant, and New Delhi is seeking to expand them further under its Act East Policy, which has long emphasised ASEAN centrality. The 2026 meetings also coincide with the ASEAN-India Year of Maritime Cooperation and will review progress under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the Plan of Action for 2026-2030.
On connectivity, Gotru acknowledged delays in projects through Myanmar and Thailand due to security conditions but said both sides had renewed their commitment to completion. He also pointed to growing people-to-people ties, noting that nearly seven million Indian tourists visited Southeast Asia last year, making India the third-largest single-country source of visitors to the region. "That sort of thing happens only with connectivity," he said.