India and Singapore discussed areas of ongoing collaboration such as trade and investment, defence and security, fintech, digitalisation, green energy, skill development and people-to-people ties.
India and Singapore on Monday reviewed collaboration in trade, investment, defence and security, fintech and digitalisation during their foreign office consultations in New Delhi.
The two sides also assessed the progress made in “specific growth engines” identified during the inaugural meeting of the India-Singapore Ministerial Roundtable (ISMR) in September 2022, and looked forward to the next edition of the special mechanism created to drive bilateral relations.
They also “discussed areas of ongoing collaboration such as trade and investment, defence and security, fintech, digitalisation, green energy, skill development and people-to-people ties”, the external affairs ministry said in a statement.
The foreign office consultations were co-chaired by Saurabh Kumar, secretary (East) in the external affairs ministry, and Luke Goh, permanent secretary in Singapore’s law ministry. Goh is concurrently the second permanent secretary in Singapore’s foreign ministry.
The two sides also discussed regional, global and multilateral issues of common interest. The Indian side appreciated Singapore’s decision to join the International Solar Alliance in June and thanked Singapore for joining the Global Biofuels Alliance that was launched during the G20 Summit.
The consultations, held close on the heels of a visit to India by Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for the G20 Summit, provided an opportunity to follow up on the leaders’ discussions and review the bilateral relationship, the statement said.
Both sides expressed satisfaction at the political exchanges this year, as several Singaporean ministers were hosted by India for G20 meetings. Goh congratulated India for a successful G20 presidency.
Both sides agreed to hold the next round of foreign office consultations in Singapore on a mutually convenient date.