India seeks to work with its neighbours: PM

New Delhi, June 20: Stating the immense potential for regional cooperation in South Asia has yet to be fully realised, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said India looks forward to working with its neighbours for mutual benefit.

Dedicating the East-North Tala Power Transmission System to the nation, here, he said he knew that the potential for regional cooperation in South Asia was immense and we had not even scratched the surface till now.

''I believe that the best is yet to come and we must all work towards realising this ambitious objective,'' Dr Singh said.

He cited India's Free Trade Agreements with Sri Lanka and Nepal, cooperation with Bhutan in tapping hydroelectricity and trade investments in Nepal. Besides, growing purchasing power of Indians helping boost tourism in Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka as some successful existing examples of regional cooperation.

''Much more can be done, and we look forward to working with our neighbours for our common mutual benefit,'' he said.

Today, we were linking India into a web of partnerships with the countries of the region and beyond through free trade and economic cooperation agreements, he said.

The emergence of the Indian economy over the last few years as one of the fastest growing economies in the world offers opportunities of expanding markets, investments, technology and entrepreneurial resources for the countries in our region, the Prime Minister said.

Regional cooperation provided unique opportunities to transform the richness of our human and natural resources into cooperative regional activities promoting development, enhancing prosperity and the well-being of our people, and ensuring our collective security in all its multifarious dimensions, he said.

''Regional cooperation is a means to achieve more efficient use of regional resources, make our economies more complementary and promote the expansion of trade and development.'' ''We live in an increasingly interdependent world. The challenges before us were to promote a balanced and equitable management of this growing interdependence of nations,'' Dr Singh said.

''The challenges we face as nations are increasingly less amenable to purely national and autonomous solutions. Energy security, food security, environmental degradation and climate change recognise no national borders.'' Pandemics like HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB or Avian Flu could only be contained or overcome through international cooperation, both regionally and globally, he added.

UNI