Vietnam offers navy base to foreign countries; Malaysian Airlines plans to invest more in India and China; Malaysian Indians seek India’s help on racial segregation; ASEAN to strengthen role of International Law;
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  • The Vietnamese Prime Minister said Cam Ranh Bay which is 180 miles North West of Ho Chi Minh city would stand ready to service ships and submarines "from all countries". The move is one of a series of interlocking regional arrangements that are being put in place to counter China's growing strength.1

    The Malaysian Airlines has kept the markets in India and China at the top of its new expansion plans. With Asian economies growing faster than those in Europe and the Americas, the national carrier is also focusing on the neighbourhood and Australia. Over 600,000 Indians travelled to Malaysia in 2009.2

    A political group representing disaffected Malaysian Indians requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to support the Indian diaspora in Malaysia on segregation issue. Dr. Singh said he had faith that Malaysia “a multicultural, multi-religious democracy” had the “flexibility” to handle such issues.3

    Vietnam, on November 5, opposed a Chinese agency's move to provide map data that violate Vietnam's sovereignty in the East Sea. Vietnam said that it requires the Chinese side to promptly remove data on violative map and observe the common views of the two countries' leaders on maintaining peace, stability, not complicating and expanding conflicts in the East Sea.4

    ASEAN will take the initiative to participate in dialogues with the United Nations (UN) and other organisations of good will such as the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization (AALCO) to improve the role of international law in key areas. Vietnamese chargé d'affaires at the UN, Ambassador Bui The Giang, emphasised this at an AALCO’s meeting on November 2.5

    In other reports, bilateral trade between India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is likely to touch $50 billion in 2010. India and ASEAN achieved the $ 45 billion target in 2008-09.6

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