India at the 23rd ASEAN-India Summit and 21st East Asia Summit in Manila: Maritime Security and Trade in Focus
The Prime Minister will visit Manila, the Philippines, from 16 to 18 November 2026 to attend the 23rd ASEAN-India Summit and the 21st East Asia Summit (EAS). Both summits take place on 17 November.
The Philippines is hosting the meetings as the 2026 chair of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), the 11-member regional group. The theme of its chairship is "Navigating Our Future, Together".
The Ministry of External Affairs said maritime security and trade and investment will be the key focus areas. India will push for deeper sea cooperation among like-minded countries in the Indo-Pacific.
India wants the ongoing review of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) to be completed as soon as possible.
A Quad summit (India, the US, Japan and Australia) is expected on the sidelines, but there has been no official confirmation. India had planned to host the Quad leaders' summit in 2025, but it did not take place.
ASEAN: Structure, Membership, and Functioning
ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is a regional group of 11 countries in Southeast Asia that work together on trade, security, culture and development. It was set up in 1967 and works by discussion and consensus (everyone must agree), not by voting. Its chair rotates every year among members in alphabetical order. ASEAN sits at the centre of several bigger regional forums, which is why major powers, including India, attend its summits.
The Manila summit is the 23rd ASEAN-India Summit, held in 2026, the ASEAN-India Year of Maritime Cooperation. This is why maritime security tops India's agenda, alongside trade and investment.
East Asia Summit (EAS)
The East Asia Summit is a yearly meeting of the top leaders of 19 countries in the Indo-Pacific: the 11 ASEAN members plus eight major partners. It is the region's main leaders-level forum for open talks on strategic, political and economic issues. ASEAN chairs it and sets its agenda, which keeps ASEAN at the centre of regional diplomacy. India has been a member since the very first summit.
At the 21st EAS in Manila, India is expected to press for deeper maritime cooperation among like-minded Indo-Pacific nations. The EAS is the right venue because it brings the US, China, Japan, Russia and Australia to the same table as ASEAN.
ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA)
The ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement is a free trade deal under which India and the ASEAN countries cut or remove import taxes (tariffs) on most goods traded between them. It covers only goods, not services or investment. Since it came into force, India's imports from ASEAN have grown much faster than its exports, which is why India asked for a review to rebalance the deal.
India has said it wants the AITIGA review finished as soon as possible. The Manila summit gives leaders a chance to push negotiators, whose October 2026 round in Jakarta ended with key chapters still open.
- Visit to Manila: 16–18 November 2026; summits on 17 November
- 23rd ASEAN-India Summit; 21st East Asia Summit
- ASEAN chair 2026: the Philippines; theme "Navigating Our Future, Together"
- ASEAN members: 11 (Timor-Leste admitted in October 2025); founded 8 August 1967 (Bangkok Declaration)
- EAS: started 2005; 19 members (11 ASEAN + India, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, US, Russia)
- 2026: ASEAN-India Year of Maritime Cooperation
- India-ASEAN: Comprehensive Strategic Partnership since 2022
- AITIGA: signed 2009, in force 1 January 2010; review under way since May 2023
- India-ASEAN trade FY2024-25: about US$ 123 billion; India's deficit over US$ 44 billion
- The Quad: India, US, Japan, Australia; Manila Quad summit not officially confirmed