EAM Jaishankar meets Turkish counterpart on ASEAN meetings sidelines

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan on the sidelines of ASEAN meetings in Vientiane on Saturday.

Jaishankar said that he discussed the bilateral ties and exchanged views on regional and global issues.

In a post on X, he said, “Met with FM @HakanFidan of Turkiye on the sidelines of ASEAN meetings in Vientiane. Discussed our bilateral ties and exchanged views on regional and global issues.”

Jaishankar on Saturday said that he had called on the Prime Minister of Laos and during their meeting, he had taken up the issue of the trafficking of Indian nationals through cyber scam centres.

Jaishankar also discussed relief and rescue of Indians with the foreign ministers of Cambodia and Thailand.

In a post on X, he said, “During my call on the Prime Minister of Lao PDR, took up the issue of the trafficking of Indian nationals through cyber scam centers. Appreciate the ongoing cooperation of Lao PDR government in the rescue and relief of our citizens. Also discussed the matter with the Foreign Ministers of Cambodia and Thailand.”

On the sidelines of ASEAN events in Vientiane, Laos, on Friday, Jaishankar held meetings with his counterparts from South Korea, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and the European Union.

The EAM met with Cho Tae-yul, the Foreign Minister of South Korea and held a wide ranging conversation on Special Strategic Partnership.

He also met with Josep Borrell Fontelles, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. The leaders discussed enhancing the India-EU ties in areas of trade, clean energy transition and advanced technologies.

The EAM held conversation with Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan and thanked Singapore for steering ASEAN-India relations.

The Foreign Minister also met Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi. He congratulated her stint as Foreign Minister and appreciated her contribution towards India-Indonesia and India-ASEAN relations.

Jaishankar met Malaysian Foreign Minister, Mohamad Haji Hasan, and discussed the initiatives in the bilateral relationship between the two nations.

The ministers also exchanged views on several regional and international issues of common interest and concern.