First ASEAN-India Defence Think Tank Forum Opens in Delhi

Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh addressed the first-ever ASEAN-India Defence Think Tank Forum at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA) in New Delhi on 14 October 2026. He said India wants an Indo-Pacific in which every country, big or small, is free to make its own choices, guard its own interests and develop in peace.

The forum

The forum runs over two days, on 14 and 15 October 2026. It was set up to deepen strategic dialogue, encourage joint analysis and find workable areas for closer defence and security cooperation between India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Delegates from all eleven ASEAN member states and from India are attending. The idea was announced by the Raksha Mantri at the second ASEAN-India Defence Ministers' Informal Meeting held in Kuala Lumpur on 31 October 2025, alongside the 12th ADMM-Plus.

What the Raksha Mantri said

The Defence Minister argued that trust has to be built, sovereignty respected, international law followed and lines of dialogue kept open if borderless problems are to be tackled. He listed terrorism, cybercrime, piracy, trafficking, illegal fishing, climate-driven disasters and supply chain risks as threats no single country can handle alone. India's Act East policy and its SAGAR and MAHASAGAR visions, he said, push for open and multipolar cooperation routed through ASEAN-led mechanisms. SAGAR stands for Security and Growth for All in the Region, and MAHASAGAR for Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions.

Maritime and technology priorities

Calling the Indian Ocean and the seas of Southeast Asia one connected maritime space, he said sharpening maritime domain awareness, interoperability and underwater cooperation is the key to a stable, rule-based order at sea. He noted that 2026 has been designated the ASEAN-India Year of Maritime Cooperation, an opening to turn shared interest into joint work on maritime information sharing, navy and coast guard cooperation and emergency response. On technology he pointed to artificial intelligence, drones, cyber capabilities and space-based systems, observing that cheap drones in recent conflicts have challenged expensive defence systems, and named the iDEX and Technology Development Fund initiatives as India's channels for working with innovators.

Industry and disaster relief

India is ready to work with ASEAN partners on patrol vessels, radars, air-defence systems, helicopters and drones, he said, adding that Aatmanirbhar Bharat does not mean working alone: co-development, co-production, maintenance, repair and overhaul, training and long-term technical support can build local skills and steady supply chains. He wanted Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief made a standing item in defence dialogue. Amb Sujan R Chinoy, Director General of MP-IDSA, delivered the welcome address and called the forum an institutional milestone for ASEAN-India defence engagement.