Amidst global turbulence, partnership with India rooted in deep reservoir of trust: Singapore PM

New Delhi, Sep 4 (IANS) Stressing that partnership between India and Singapore is rooted in shared values, mutual respect and deep reservoir of trust, Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Thursday said that the partnership between two nations is more important in a world marked by great uncertainty and turbulence.

While addressing joint press meet along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi following their talks at the Hyderabad House in New Delhi, Wong stated that Singapore will continue to support India's skill development journey. The Singapore PM said that he and PM Modi have agreed to enhance people-to-people exchanges, including through closer civil service cooperation.

"Prime Minister Modi and I reaffirmed that people-to-people ties remain the bedrock of our relationship. We agreed to enhance exchanges including through closer civil service cooperation. All of these initiatives reflect the breath and depth of our CSP. And to guide our efforts, PM Modi and I have also agreed on a roadmap, an ambitious and detailed roadmap, to chart the next phase of our relationship.

"In a world marked by great uncertainty and turbulence, the partnership between India and Singapore becomes even more important because this is a partnership rooted in shared values, mutual respect and a deep reservoir of trust. We can draw strength from our shared history and the friendship and trust between our peoples and together we can strengthen resilience, seize new opportunities and contribute to stability and growth in our region and beyond. So, I look forward to working hand-in-hand with Prime Minister Modi to bring the Singapore India partnership to even greater heights in the years ahead," he added.

Stating that the bilateral relationship between India and Singapore has "grown in tandem", he mentioned as an investor, Singapore accounts for around a quarter of India's foreign direct investment inflows and cooperation now spans various sectors.

Lauding the leadership of PM Modi, Lawrence Wong stated, "Over this past decade, India has made remarkable advances under Prime Minister Modi's leadership. India is now the fourth largest economy in the world with a dynamism and influence felt far beyond its borders."

Speaking about his discussions with PM Modi, Singapore PM said, "Last year, PM Modi and I agreed to elevate relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership or a CSP. This morning, we had fruitful discussions on how we can take this CSP forward. Prime Minister has highlighted quite a number of areas and I will reiterate a few of them. Singapore will continue to support India's skill development journey. We are honored to accept India's invitation to be a global partner for the national center of excellence in Chennai which will focus on advanced manufacturing. We will also collaborate with India to set up state level skill centers to meet industry needs in sectors like aviation maintenance repair and overhaul and semiconductors."

He announced that India and Singapore will expand cooperation in manufacturing and industrial development and deepen collaboration in semiconductors. He stated that two nations will strengthen connectivity across the air, sea and digital sectors. He stated that two nations will also enhance digital connectivity between financial systems.

"We will strengthen connectivity across the air, sea, and digital domains. This morning, we exchanged an MoU on cooperation in training, research, and development in civil aviation. This will support the growth of our aviation sectors, facilitate trade and tourism, and create more commercial opportunities. On the maritime side, we just launched phase two of PSA's Bharat Mumbai container terminal in Navi Mumbai, which will become India's largest standalone container terminal," said Wong.

"We will expand cooperation in frontier areas like space. To date, more than 20 Singapore made satellites have been launched by India. Through the MoU on promoting collaboration in the space sector, we will broaden this partnership and push the boundaries of what we can achieve together," the Singapore PM added.

--IANS

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