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Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in the sixth Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Summit, hosted by Thailand, the current chair. The summit was held under the theme “ BIMSTEC: Prosperous, Resilient and Open ”, reflecting the shared aspirations of member nations and a collective vision for inclusive regional development amid global uncertainties. PM Modi began his address by expressing heartfelt condolences over the tragic loss of lives in the recent earthquake affecting Myanmar and Thailand.
He commended Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra for her effective leadership and Thailand’s successful stewardship as BIMSTEC Chair. Highlighting BIMSTEC’s growing relevance as a bridge connecting South and Southeast Asia, he underscored the platform’s increasing impact in driving regional cooperation, integration, and progress. He emphasised the need to further strengthen BIMSTEC’s agenda and institutional capacity.
In his address, the prime minister announced a series of 21 India-led initiatives to support institution and capacity building within the BIMSTEC framework. These include the establishment of specialised Centres of Excellence in India dedicated to disaster management, sustainable maritime transport, traditional medicine, and agriculture research and training. A new skilling initiative— BODHI (BIMSTEC for Organised Development of Human Resource Infrastructure) —was also launched, aiming to offer training and scholarships to students, professionals, researchers, diplomats, and youth from member countries.
PM Modi further proposed a pilot study to assess the digital infrastructure needs of BIMSTEC nations and offered India’s support in sharing its Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) expertise. This includes exploring interoperability between India’s UPI and payment systems of member countries. He also announced a regional capacity-building programme in cancer care and called for deeper economic integration through the establishment of a BIMSTEC Chamber of Commerce and an annual BIMSTEC Business Summit to be hosted in India.
This supplemented Thailand’s call for an early free trade agreement and for a Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) forum. Emphasising the importance of cultural and people-to-people linkages, the Prime Minister announced several initiatives, including a BIMSTEC Athletics Meet in 2025, the first BIMSTEC Games in 2027 to mark the grouping’s 30th anniversary, a Traditional Music Festival, a Young Leaders’ Summit, a Hackathon, and a Young Professional Visitors Programme. On the security front, India will host the first meeting of the BIMSTEC Home Ministers’ Mechanism.
In disaster response, India will conduct the fourth joint exercises for disaster management authorities and operationalise the BIMSTEC Centre for Disaster Management. Other initiatives include training in space technologies, development and launch of nano satellites, and operationalisation of the BIMSTEC Energy Centre in Bengaluru. Progress is also being accelerated on regional electric grid interconnection and maritime cooperation through a new Sustainable Maritime Transport Centre in India.
One of the key takeaways from the sixth BIMSTEC Summit was the demonstration of resilience and commitment by the member states, particularly in the face of adversity. Despite a devastating earthquake that struck Myanmar and Thailand just days before the summit—that impacted Bangkok as well—the summit proceeded as planned. This was especially significant as the previous summit in 2022 had been held virtually, and BIMSTEC leaders had not convened in person for over seven years.
Thailand, despite facing political challenges, successfully hosted the summit, reaffirming its commitment to regional cooperation and injecting much-needed momentum and continuity into the BIMSTEC process. The in-person format of the summit allowed for meaningful bilateral engagements on the sidelines. Modi held important meetings with his counterpart from Nepal, KP Sharma Oli; chief advisor of Bangladesh Muhammad Yunus; and senior general of Myanmar, Min Aung Hlaing.
These interactions were in addition to his formal state visit to Thailand, where he met with the Thai prime minister. These bilateral dialogues—facilitated by the summit—served as an effective way to maximise the value of in-person diplomacy, particularly in a multilateral setting where such opportunities have been rare for BIMSTEC. Another notable development was the increasing recognition of BIMSTEC’s role within the broader Indo-Pacific framework.
The organisation now sits at the strategic crossroads of India’s “Act East” and “Neighbourhood First” policies and aligns with the country’s vision of the MAHASAGAR (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions) doctrine. During the summit, Thailand agreed to join the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI) under the Maritime Ecology pillar. Further, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between BIMSTEC and the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), reflecting shared perspectives and mutual interests in the Indo-Pacific region.
It is worth noting that both BIMSTEC and IORA are currently led by seasoned Indian diplomats, which has brought renewed leadership and energy to these regional groupings. With BIMSTEC’s charter now in place and new frameworks like the proposed Maritime Transport Agreement on the table, there is a growing emphasis on enhancing digital, physical, and civilisational connectivity across member states. The infrastructure and connectivity opportunities within the BIMSTEC region are estimated to be worth over $250 billion, highlighting significant scope for development.
However, the scale of these projects often exceeds the capacity of member nations alone. To address this, BIMSTEC may need to pursue trilateral or multilateral collaborations with external partners like Japan, Australia, and Singapore. Integration is key—not just to foster economic growth, but also to ensure that political disruptions do not sever emerging people-to-people and commercial ties.
India’s flagship initiatives like the Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project and the Trilateral Highway through Myanmar and Thailand are examples of this intent, though progress has been slow due to the unstable situation in Myanmar. Interestingly, the summit also coincided with the US announcement of steep new tariffs, which drew considerable attention across BIMSTEC nations. India was hit with tariffs of 26 per cent, Bangladesh with 37 per cent, Sri Lanka with 44 per cent, Thailand with 37 per cent, and Myanmar with 45 per cent.
Bhutan and Nepal, with a smaller share of US imports, faced tariffs of around 10 per cent. These figures underline the urgency for BIMSTEC to develop a cohesive and proactive regional trade strategy—one that has been long in the making but remains stalled since the early preparatory work around 2004. Encouragingly, intra-BIMSTEC trade has reportedly grown in recent years, creating opportunities to buffer external shocks through stronger regional economic integration.
Security issues were also addressed candidly at the summit. The creation of a Home Ministers’ Meeting mechanism marks a constructive step forward, aiming to enhance cooperation in areas like border management, illegal migration, cybercrime, drug trafficking, and disaster response. This is particularly relevant given recent reports of cross-border criminal activity and rescues involving nationals—including Indians—along Thailand’s borders with Myanmar and Laos.
Above all, the summit fostered a spirit of regional optimism. By setting aside bilateral differences, the participating nations demonstrated a collective will to build resilience and deepen cooperation in the BIMSTEC region. The author is a former ambassador to Germany, Indonesia, Ethiopia, ASEAN and the African Union.
He tweets @AmbGurjitSingh. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views.
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