New Delhi: Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Singapore on September 4, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the Indian leader always had 'special sentiment' for the Asian country and asserted that the time was ripe for India-Singapore ties to move to the next level. He said relations between the two countries have been extremely strong in the last two decades and need to become more contemporary given the changes across the world.
PM Modi has embarked on a historic visit to Brunei Darussalam, becoming the first Indian leader to make a bilateral visit to the country. He will follow that visit with a trip to Singapore on Wednesday (September 4), where he will meet his counterpart Lawrence Wong and others to deepen trade and defence ties on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of their Strategic Partnership.
In an exclusive interview with The Straits Times, Jaishankar said Singapore should fully utilise the new landscape as India has accelerated national growth and modernisation in the last decade. "Beyond the bilateral, there is also the issue of closer collaboration in a volatile and uncertain world. In this regard, we must recognise that ours is a partnership based on a high degree of trust and understanding... Prime Minister Modi has always had a special sentiment for Singapore and that leadership connect will matter more than ever before," he said.
'Time to move to next level of India-Singapore ties'
Jaishankar asserted that the world has come a long way since India and Singapore established diplomatic relations in 1965 and the 30th anniversary of former PM Goh Chok Tong's call for a mild 'India fever' in Singapore. "The time is ripe to move to the next level of our ties, reflecting current realities in both countries, as well as the state of the world," he added.
He also called for Singapore to appreciate India's last decade of growth, recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and rapid digitalisation, which were discussed during the meeting of senior leaders last week. "I would particularly single out those technologies promising for the future, such as semiconductors, green technologies and electric mobility. We also need to collaboratively think about the future of connectivity and energy flows," the minister said.
"As regards the global scenario, we have built on the Act East policy to now have a full-fledged Indo-Pacific commitment. There is a new equilibrium in the making and India will certainly play its part. This is very much in the interest of Singapore and ASEAN. In an era where we will witness deficits in regard to global commons, our relationship can make a bigger difference," he further said.
'Not a zero-sum game for us'
When asked about whether India's principal focus in its extended neighbourhood was the Gulf instead of ASEAN, Jaishankar responded by saying that while India's ties with Gulf countries have risen in terms of investments, technology, security and connectivity in the recent years, it was not enough to draw any conclusions in regard to ASEAN, where ties with India have also deepened.
"The fact is that India - as the most populous country and currently the fifth-largest economy -will necessarily have multi-directional engagements. The world is not a zero-sum game for us," he asserted. The minister also mentioned that Singapore was at the core of India's Act East policy and predicted a bright future for the partnership between the two countries.
PM Modi's agenda in Singapore
India and Singapore established diplomatic relations in 1965 and share warm and friendly relations with robust ties in trade and investment, economic cooperation, defence, maritime security, energy and more. The India-Singapore relations were elevated to Strategic Partnership during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Singapore in 2015. Singapore also houses a large Indian diaspora, comprising one of the biggest ethnic minorities there.
PM Modi's visit comes ahead of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties and 10th anniversary of the Strategic Partnership. It follows a high-level meeting between senior ministers of both countries, including Jaishankar, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal.
Detailing PM Modi's Singapore visit, the Ministry of External Affairs said the Indian leader will be visiting the state after six years. Mazumdar underscored that the visit would provide New Delhi with an opportunity to engage with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. Our trade and investment flows have shown steady growth, we have robust defence cooperation and growing exchanges in culture and education and we have identified new anchors of our partnership under the India-Singapore Ministerial Round Table framework," said Jaideep Mazumdar, MEA Secretary (East).
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