Cementing relations with Southeast Asian nations

Myanmar and Thailand, historically linked with India, hold strategic importance as gateways to India’s connectivity with Southeast Asia.

India's relations with Myanmar and its four neighbouring countries-Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam-have been marked by cordiality, with few significant points of contention.

This creates a strong foundation for further strengthening these ties. Recent road and rail connectivity projects, aimed at linking these nations to the Indian subcontinent via the Northeastern states, hold great potential for closer cooperation. Enhanced connectivity would significantly boost the movement of goods and people between all seven ASEAN nations these five, plus Malaysia and Singapore.

The removal of transportation bottlenecks would unlock numerous complementarities, creating a win-win situation for all involved.

The prospect of near economic integration, similar to the European Economic Community or Mercosur in South America, is within reach. With the right geopolitical alignments, such a development could help realize the goals of India's "Look East" and "Act East" policies.

MYANMAR

Myanmar, till 1989 known as Burma, is India's immediate neighbour, sharing a 1,500 km border along its five Northeastern states. With its multi-ethnic population of 55 million, the country is well-endowed in natural resources and was once called the "land of rivers and rice." Rich soil and adequate water made it capable of growing quality rice, cotton, and teakwood. With deposits of natural gas, tin, zinc, feldspar, red rubies, and jade, and being an independent nation for most of its history, it had become militarily strong and economically well-off. In 1767, it defeated the powerful kings of Chiang Mai and Ayutthaya in Thailand, extending the Kingdom's boundaries. Unfortunately, in the twentieth century, and particularly after securing independence, the country has been on a downward trajectory.