New York [US], September 28 (ANI): Secretary General of BIMSTEC (Bangladesh-India-Myanmar-Sri Lanka-Thailand Economic Cooperation), Indra Mani Pandey said that External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar chaired an informal meeting of BIMSTEC members held in New York alongside the ongoing 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

The meeting held on Friday (local time), he said, was in preparation for the upcoming BIMSTEC Leaders' Summit in Thailand.

"The date of the BIMSTEC meeting will be announced as soon as we have the informal understanding of the member states," said Pandey.

"Today was the first meeting of BIMSTEC Foreign Ministers. It was an informal meeting on the sidelines of UNGA. It was hosted by India and chaired by EAM Dr S Jaishankar. We had Foreign Ministers and all the high-level members from all the BIMSTEC nations," the BIMSTEC Secretary General said.

"The members in their statements, spoke about their vision for BIMSTEC, their priorities and the areas that they would like regional cooperation in BIMSTEC to focus on. This led to an exchange of views among the Foreign Ministers and other representatives on how we can move forward with the agenda of BIMSTEC," Pandey said.

Elucidating the objectives of the the grouping, BIMSTEC stated that it brings together three strands of India's Foreign Policy, which are, the Neighborhood First Policy, the Look East Policy, and also the SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) Policy.

"Cooperation through BIMSTEC, which encompasses 15 sectors is very important," he said.

Bangladesh, said the BIMSTEC Secretary General, was represented by their Foreign Advisor who presented the country's vision for BIMSTEC, reiterating their continued support for the success of BIMSTEC.

For the upcoming BIMSTEC Summit, Pandey stated that member states are still in consultations. "The member states are still consulting among themselves, because as you know, there is a need for all the leaders to find a common date where they are free to come together," he explained.

While a date has not yet been agreed upon, he assured that the Chair, Thailand, is actively working to find a suitable date for the summit.

Ealrier, External Affairs Minister Jaishankar in a social media post X said that he took stock of India's close cooperation in health, food security, trade, investment, economy and energy.

He highlighted that the meeting focused on improving physical, maritime and digital connectivity across the region along with exploring opportunities for capacity building, skill development and improving people-to-people ties.

Jaishankar noted that the development of BIMSTEC Centres of Excellence is a collective resolve and that the meeting reaffirmed India's commitment to wider engagement with BIMSTEC in line with Neighbourhood First, Vision SAGAR and Act East Policy.

The External Affairs Minister said that BIMSTEC represents the intersection of its 'Neighbourhood First' outlook, the 'Act East Policy' and the 'SAGAR' vision.

"Each of these endeavours is being purposed with a specific focus on the Bay of Bengal, where collaborative potential has long remained underrealized. Our challenge is to change that for the better, and to do so rapidly. The retreat is meant to exchange ideas openly, candidly and fruitfully," Jaishankar said.

"We all benefited from the last such exercise in Bangkok. This one now has a particular importance as it serves to prepare strong outcomes for the Summit to be held later in the year. Our message should be clear - that we are all determined to infuse new energies, new resources and a new commitment into cooperation among the Bay of Bengal nations," the EAM said. (ANI)