Singapore and Thailand reaffirm close defence ties

SINGAPORE - Thailand's Deputy Minister of Defence and army chief Udomdej Sitabutr visited Second Minister for Defence Mr Chan Chun Sing on Tuesday afternoon in a bid to affirm bilateral defence ties between Singapore and Thailand.

Mr Chan is also the Minister for Social and Family Development and the meeting took place at that Ministry's headquarters.

Mr Udomdej, who is in Singapore for a two-day introductory visit, had, along with Singapore's Chief of Army, Major-General Perry Lim, co-officiated the closing ceremony of the Ex Kocha Singa at the Murai Urban Training Facility.

The Ex Kocha Singa, a bilateral exercise between the Singapore Army and the Royal Thai Army, was held in Singapore from Feb 1 to 10.

Now in its 17th year, the exercise involved a total of 750 soldiers from the Singapore Armed Forces' 4th Battalion Singapore Infantry Regiment and the 1st Infantry Battalion from the Royal Thai Army's 15th Infantry Regiment.

The soldiers took part in various activities such as professional sharing on weapon systems and a live-firing session at the Multi-Mission Range Complex in Pasir Laba.

The exercise culminated in a combined battalion-level urban operations exercise at the Murai Urban Training Facility.

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