India, Singapore elevate ties to comprehensive strategic partnership

India and Singapore have elevated their relationship to the comprehensive strategic partnership level, “given the breadth and depth of bilateral ties and immense potential,” leaders of both the nations said.

Taking stock of the robust progress in economic ties, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Singaporean counterpart Lawrence Wong called for further expanding trade and investment flows between the two countries.

The raising of bilateral ties is expected to give a significant boost to India’s Act East Policy, an evolution of the earlier Look East Policy, aimed at enhancing economic, strategic, and cultural connections with Asia-Pacific countries for regional stability and growth.

“Singapore is also an important facilitator of our Act East policy. Our shared belief in democratic values connects us with each other. I am delighted to have the opportunity to visit Singapore at the beginning of my third term,” Modi told Wong during his two-day visit to the city-state.

India also aims to create multiple ‘Singapores’ of its own, Modi said during talks with the Singaporean prime minister on Thursday, while adding that “Singapore is not merely a partner country but serves as an inspiration for every developing nation.”

Both nations sought to step up collaboration in semiconductors and digital technologies in their bid to take a bite off the global chip supply chain that has been roiled by tensions between China and the US.

The Asian nations also signed deals to groom talent in semiconductor design and production while also aiming to widen Singaporean investments in India, especially in the technology sector, a government statement said. Both countries also signed agreements on cybersecurity, 5G mobile networks, super-computing and artificial intelligence.

During the trip, Modi met top executives of several companies, including those of sovereign wealth funds Temasek Holdings and GIC, Bloomberg reported, citing an unidentified government official.

Leaders of both the nations also signed agreements in areas spanning health and skills development.

Modi met Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam on Thursday, and appreciated his “passionate support” for the India–Singapore partnership.

Both leaders discussed bilateral and global issues of mutual interest, while noting the longstanding friendship and cooperation between the two countries “based on trust, mutual respect and complementarity.”

In this regard, they said that the elevation of the ties to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership level will chart a robust way forward for joint collaboration.

“My visit to Singapore has been a very fruitful one. It will certainly add vigor to bilateral ties and benefit the people of our nations. I thank the government and people of Singapore for their warmth,” Modi said in a  social media post on X.

My visit to Singapore has been a very fruitful one. It will certainly add vigour to bilateral ties and benefit the people of our nations. I thank the government and people of Singapore for their warmth. pic.twitter.com/hx0DVl71WX

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 5, 2024

Modi and Wong visited semiconductor test equipment maker AEM , where representatives of the Singapore Semiconductor Industry Association briefed the Indian PM on the development of the semiconductor ecosystem in Singapore and the opportunities for collaboration.

Modi described the India—Singapore Ministerial Roundtable, the second edition of which concluded in Singapore last month, as a unique bilateral mechanism, while appreciating the work done by senior ministers from both countries in deliberating and identifying a new agenda for bilateral cooperation.

Both leaders also called for “accelerated action under the pillars of cooperation identified during the roundtable—advanced manufacturing, connectivity, digitalization, healthcare and medicine, skills development, and sustainability.

The leaders also underscored that collaboration under these pillars, particularly in semiconductors and critical and emerging technologies, opens a new chapter in bilateral relations, “making our ties future-oriented.”

Modi highlighted that Singapore, with an investment of around $160 billion in the Indian economy, is a leading economic partner for the south Asian country.

He further noted that rapid and sustained growth in India has opened up immense investment opportunities for Singaporean entities. The leaders reviewed existing cooperation in defense and security, maritime domain awareness, education, AI, fintech, new technology domains, science and technology, and knowledge partnerships.

They also called for strengthening connectivity between the countries to enhance economic and people-to-people ties and announcing India’s first Thiruvalluvar Cultural Centre that will be inaugurated in Singapore soon.

Modi also said Singapore was India’s first country to launch the unified payments interface (UPI) person-to-person payment facility, while highlighting that 17 Singaporean satellites have been launched from Indian soil in the past 10 years.

Next year, India and Singapore will mark the 60th anniversary of their bilateral ties.