President Of India's Statement On Departure From New Delhi On Her State Visits To Vietnam And Indonesia

The following is the text of the Statement of the President of India, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil, on board her special aircraft on her departure today from New Delhi to Ho Chi Minh City, at the start of her State Visits to Vietnam and Indonesia from November 24 to December 3, 2008: -

"I am happy to be undertaking a State visit to Vietnam and Indonesia, countries with whom India has historical association and bonds of understanding over a long period. Both countries are important partners in the bilateral and in the framework of India's 'Look East Policy'.

I look forward to my discussions with President Triet and other leaders of Vietnam on ways to further strengthen our political and economic links which is a pivotal part of our Strategic Partnership. The solid foundation of our relationship was laid by Prime Minister Nehru and President Ho Chi Minh, more than five decades ago. Our friendship has been nurtured continuously since then, and is deeply valued and cherished by our two countries. We maintain a process of regular dialogue with the leadership of Vietnam on matters of mutual interest. During my visit, I will reiterate our close relations with Vietnam and, seek new avenues of cooperation, to make our ties even stronger.

After Vietnam, during my visit to Indonesia, I would be emphasizing the strength and diversity of our new strategic partnership in my discussions with President Yudhoyono.

My visit to Indonesia, a friendly country with which we have had people to people exchanges for more than two millennia, have a historical character of their own, as seen through the strands of our shared cultural traditions. Ever since we attained independence, our cooperation bilaterally and in the multilateral context has been highly significant. We attach great importance to our relationship with Indonesia and will look forward to building partnerships across multiple sectors in a mutually beneficial manner. My visit to Indonesia, signals our commitment to have relations that befits two large nations who are neighbours, sharing a maritime boundary. The distance between the southern most island of the Andaman group and the north western tip of Indonesia is only 80 kilometers.

Vietnam and Indonesia, as well as India, have been developing at an impressive rate in the past decade, according to their respective economic policies. This has enabled higher interaction not only in the traditional areas of cooperation like trade and investment but also in specific areas like capacity building, entrepreneurship development, science & technology among others. I hope to have discussions on identifying additional areas of co-operation with these countries as well as exchange views on matters of regional and global interest including terrorism, energy security, food security, reform of the international organization, among others, in the current backdrop of the international financial crisis.

As a part of India's 'Look East Policy', it has been our endeavour to forge close relations with countries of ASEAN, of which Vietnam and Indonesia are important members. My visit seeks to emphasize this engagement in all its aspects. The India-ASEAN Trade in Goods agreement, which has been concluded recently, will open new possibilities of regional inter-linkages in commerce. A Business delegation accompanies me on this visit to explore avenues for intensification of our economic ties with Vietnam and Indonesia.

During the visit I will also convey the warm greetings and the message of friendship of the people of India to the people of Vietnam and of Indonesia.

Thank You."