PM Modi Begins Two-Nation Tour To Brunei, Singapore To Boost Strategic Ties

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday expressed confidence in boosting India’s historical ties with Brunei and deepening its strategic partnership with Singapore as he embarked on a two-nation visit.

“PM @narendramodi takes off for Bandar Seri Begawan, the first destination of his 2-Nation visit to Brunei and Singapore. This is the first-ever bilateral visit by an Indian PM to Brunei,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a post on social media platform X.

Brunei

The Prime Minister said in his departure statement that he looked forward to his meetings with Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah and other members of the royal family to advance the historical relationship to new heights. At a media briefing on Monday, MEA’s Secretary (East) Jaideep Mazumdar, said India and Brunei are working towards setting up a “joint working group in defence”.

Singapore

PM Modi will travel to Singapore on Wednesday. He said he looked forward to the opportunity to meet President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong. Modi will also meet leaders of Singapore’s business community.

“I look forward to my discussions to deepen our Strategic Partnership with Singapore, particularly in new and emerging areas of advanced manufacturing, digitalization, and sustainable development,” he said. Both countries, he said, are important partners in India’s Act East Policy and the Indo-Pacific Vision. He said, “I am confident that my visits would further strengthen our partnership with Brunei, Singapore and the larger ASEAN region.”

‘Dynamic strategic partnership’

During the press conference on Monday, the Secretary (East) stressed that India-Singapore ties have “evolved” and there is a “dynamic strategic partnership” encompassing various areas from shared history and people-to-people ties that form an important link between the two countries.

“Our trade and investment flows have shown a steady growth, we have a robust defence cooperation and growing exchanges in culture and education. We have identified new anchors of our partnership under the India-Singapore ministerial roundtable framework,” he said.