Valuing its relationship with China, India has reacted cautiously saying these fundamental issues do not require its interference and ASEAN is in a position to resolve the crisis.

The India-ASEAN Commemorative Summit adopted a Vision Statement according to which ASEAN-India relationship was elevated to the level of Strategic Partnership, here on Thursday.

The Vision State was adopted by India and Heads of Governments of nine ASEAN nation and the Vice President of the Philippines.

It was also announced the negotiations for extending India-ASEAN Free Trade Agreemt (FTA) to cover services and investment have been completed and would soon be implemented after signing.

Speaking on the occasion the Vietnam Prime Minister Tan Dung said 'we seek India's support on basis of ASEAN 6-point formula to settle the South China Sea crisis alongwith China.'

Some parts of South China Sea has become controversial with China claiming its suzernity. Vietnam and the Philippines are in dispute with China. India's oil exploration in the South China Sea off the coast of Vietnam is being contested by China.

India, however, is of the view of the need for ensuring freedom of navigation, exploration and safety of sea lanes of communication for unfettered movement of trade in accordance with international law, including UNCLOS.

Further clarifying India's position, the External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said : 'These fundamental issues do not require India's interference. ASEAN can deal with it. There are issues of sovereignty. There is a need to move step by step instead of complicating the issue.'

On being quested about India's relationship with China in the future, Khurshid said : 'the relationship between India and China will be significant.'

In his opening statement to the Summit, the Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh said : 'this is a time of great flux and transition, with several unsettled questions and unresolved issues in our region. Our responsibility to work for peace has increased and become more urgent. Our shared values, convergent world views and similarities in approaches to the region should help us make the India-ASEAN relationship more comprehensive and elevate it to a Strategic Partnership for the next decade and beyond.'

The Vision Statement lays out a comprehensive roadmap for political, security, economic, socio-cultural and development cooperation. It imposes on us the responsibility to work diligently and innovatively to fulfill the heightened expectations from this relationship, Dr Singh said at the conclusion of the Summit.

The co-chair of the Summit and the Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen termed India as one of the key players in Asia and its role being important particularly in reviving the global economy from the present crisis. India and ASEAN need to work closely.

The Sultan of Brunei Hassanal Bolkiah, India's country co-ordinator for ASEAN said that much more needs to be done by India and ASEAN. He was confident that India-ASEAN bilateral trade target of $100 billion can be achieved by 2015.

The Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak sought English teachers from India and more seats for Malaysian students to pursue education in India.

The Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong informed that India-Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) was being reviewed.