HOW IS BIMSTEC IMPORTANT FOR INDIA? PM Modi was on a two-day visit (3-4 April 2025) to Thailand at the invitation of Thailand's Prime Minister Patongtarn Shinawatra. He was making this visit to attend the sixth BIMSTEC summit. On reaching Thailand, he was welcomed by the Thai Prime Minister. After attending the BIMSTEC summit, PM Modi will also go on a state visit to Sri Lanka. This will be the Prime Minister's third visit to Thailand. The summit theme held on 4 April 2025 in Bangkok was 'Prosperous, Resilient and Open BIMSTEC'. India is giving more importance to BIMSTEC than the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). SAARC was formed to strengthen regional cooperation in South Asia but due to the policies of Pakistan in this organization and its support of terrorism, SAARC has become inactive. A STRONG OPTION FOR INDIA In such a situation, BIMSTEC is emerging as a strong option for India. It sees BIMSTEC as an excellent platform to ...