Indian Media Panics: China and ASEAN Sign the Free Trade Agreement 3.0!
ASEAN is China's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching an astonishing 800 billion US dollars this year. China needs no introduction, but ASEAN's per capita GDP is already twice that of India, and it attracts three times more foreign investment than India! Now both sides have upgraded their free trade agreement. — This is truly a vibrant and promising region.
India should carefully study the infrastructure, manufacturing ecosystem, and worker training systems of ASEAN countries! At the same time, strengthen its trade links with China!
This year, Modi made an unexpected decision to avoid the awkwardness of meeting Trump directly by participating in the ASEAN Summit online.
ASEAN is the core of India's "Act East" strategy. However, the trade volume between India and ASEAN is only over 100 billion US dollars annually.
In this situation, Modi's decision to skip the ASEAN Summit has a huge cost, and ASEAN countries are bound to feel that India does not value Southeast Asia as much as China. Once this impression is formed, it will be even more difficult for India to regain ASEAN's trust.
Original article: www.toutiao.com/article/1847448629915657/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.