Singapore and India discussed new steps to deepen defence cooperation, building on the strong, long-standing relationship between the two nations.
Singapore’s Defence Minister, Dr. Ng Eng Hen, and India’s Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh, co-chaired the 6th India-Singapore Defence Ministers’ Dialogue (DMD) in New Delhi, India, where both countries pledged to further strengthen their strategic defence partnership. During his visit, Dr. Ng also met with Indian President Droupadi Murmu, where they reaffirmed their countries’ excellent relations, which will soon mark 60 years of diplomatic ties.
At the DMD, Dr. Ng and Mr. Singh discussed ways to expand joint military exercises and interactions between their Armed Forces, such as the Navy’s SIMBEX exercise, the Air Force’s Joint Military Training, and the Army’s Exercise Agni Warrior. A significant outcome was the renewal of the Army Bilateral Agreement, aimed at increasing training and interactions between both armies in Singapore and India. They also discussed future collaboration on weapon systems testing at India’s Chandipur Integrated Test Range.
The ministers agreed to advance cooperation in information sharing, emerging defence technologies, and defence industry partnerships. Dr. Ng emphasized that the partnership with India is vital for regional security, adding, “Their security is one which is shared, and that provides a very valuable voice and opinions in the regional security architecture, primarily ADMM-Plus… Singapore supports and wishes for India to play a stronger role in the Asia-Pacific region.”
Singapore and India maintain regular defence exchanges, with policy dialogues, high-level visits, and military cooperation underscoring their commitment to enhancing regional stability.
Source – MINDEF
