Singapore and India renew army training pact

SINGAPORE - Singapore and India have extended a bilateral agreement on joint military training between the armies of both countries for the next five years.

The agreement, which allows both armies to train together in India, was renewed as Minister for Defence Ng Eng Hen and Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh co-chaired the 6th India-Singapore Defence Ministers’ Dialogue in New Delhi on Oct 22.

With Singapore and India set to mark 60 years of official ties in 2025, both ministers also reaffirmed excellent bilateral ties at their meeting, and discussed ways to step up mutual defence engagement, said Singapore’s Ministry of Defence (Mindef).

This includes areas such as emerging technologies and defence industry cooperation, as well as the potential for Singapore to use India’s Chandipur Integrated Test Range for the live firing of weapons systems, added Mindef in its statement.

Speaking after the dialogue, Dr Ng said he also discussed ways for the two armies to go beyond their current interactions, such as for Singapore and India to take turns hosting annual troop exercises.

“We had a meeting of minds, as well as the same motivations to deepen our defence cooperation,” he added.

First inked in 2008, the Bilateral Agreement for the Conduct of Joint Army Training and Exercises has seen the two armed forces hold bilateral armour and artillery exercises, codenamed Exercise Bold Kurukshetra and Exercise Agni Warrior, respectively, over more than a decade. The agreement was extended in 2013 and 2018, each time for five years.

The two defence ministers also discussed ways to deepen naval cooperation, which is in its 30th year, added Dr Ng.

The Republic of Singapore Navy and the Indian Navy recently concluded the

30th Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (Simbex)

in the southern reaches of the South China Sea, within international waters.

According to India’s Defence Ministry, Simbex is the Indian Navy’s longest uninterrupted bilateral maritime exercise with any foreign navy.

Both air forces also hold regular bilateral exercises, with the latest joint training having started on Oct 21 in Kalaikunda in India’s West Bengal state. The exercise will run till Nov 21, with the Republic of Singapore Air Force taking part with F-15SG and F-16 fighter jets, the G550 airborne early warning and control aircraft, and C-130 Hercules transport aircraft.

The defence ministers’ meeting came on the heels of

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Singapore

on Sept 4. During that visit, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and Mr Modi agreed to elevate bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

In New Delhi, Dr Ng also called on Indian President Droupadi Murmu. The meeting signalled both countries’ high priority in strengthening defence ties, said Dr Ng in a Facebook post.

At the meeting, Singapore’s High Commissioner to India Simon Wong extended President Tharman Shanmugaratnam’s invitation for Ms Murmu to visit Singapore in 2025 to commemorate 60 years of diplomatic relations.