The Defence Minister of Singapore Dr. Ng Eng Hen, has begun his 3-day official state visit to India. As part of his official itinerary, he co-chaired the sixth India-Singapore Defence Ministers’ Dialogue in New Delhi, with his Indian counterpart Shri Rajnath Singh.The summit commenced on Tuesday morning with the Indian Defence Minister extending a cordial welcome to the Singaporean Delegation.Mr. Singh highlighted that the robust strategic alliance between Singapore and India serves as an exemplar of the strengthening geopolitical rapport between both of these nations. Singh remarked, ” The meeting is happening at a time when India marks the decade of India’s Act in Policy, in which Singapore has played a key role in promoting economic cooperation, cultural ties, and developed strategic connectivity with country institutions.” Reciprocating Singh’s sentiments Dr. Ng Eng Hen acknowledged the significance of this momentous milestone, he said, “You reminded us that this is the 10th year since your Act East Policy. From Singapore’s perspective, India has always been part of the East. Whether you choose to act or look, we consider you part of the area.”
Reminiscing the hitherto glorious history of India-Singapore alliance he further added that India was one of the foremost countries Singapore had looked up to at the very inception of its armed forces post independence. Hen highlighted that such historical memoirs serve as important reminders and reinstates the significance of India in the Indo Pacific region. Dr. Hen, the Defence Minister of Singapore further stated that he was profoundly gratified to observe that a decade long bilateral engagement has substantially fortified the defense collaborations of both the nations and enhanced the comprehensive strategic alliance to an unprecedented level of sophistication. Expressing his gratitude towards Prime Minister Modi for his official visit to Singapore earlier this year he added that the meeting was a memorable and excellent one.A day before, the Ministry of Defence had announced the sixth India-Singapore Defence Ministers’ Dialogue in New Delhi on October 22, 2024.The communiqué reflected the broadening scope of bilateral engagements between India and Singapore, focusing on a plethora of defense related interactions.These include multifaceted service-to-service liaisons, comprehensive military exchanges, high-level strategic delegations, capacity enhancement initiatives, advanced training modules, collaboration in United Nations Peacekeeping Operations, naval port calls, and a series of bilateral defense exercises.Since it’s inception in 2016, the India-Singapore Defense Ministers’ Dialogue has been serving as a capstone forum for safeguarding defense relations between both of these nations. The fifth iteration of this high level dialogue was convened in January, 2021, carried out via a virtual teleconference, underscoring the importance and resilience of defense diplomacy amidst tumultuous contemporary geopolitical situations.During the meeting, the two parties showed confidence in the outcomes of the meeting providing filip to the reinvigorated potential growth of a regional security architecture.
