Prime Minister of Singapore Lawrence Wong is on an official visit to India, on the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Both the leaders addressed a joint press-briefing in New Delhi and reiterated their commitment to further strengthen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership prevailing between India and Singapore. They also acknowledged the importance of championing a mutually beneficial and trusted partnership in the backdrop of spiking geopolitical unpredictability and turbulence.
As India and Singapore celebrate 60th anniversary of bilateral and diplomatic relations both leaders scripted a roadmap to elevate the comprehensive strategic partnership(CSP) in the domain of economy, counter-terrorism, skill development, digitization, sustainability, connectivity, defence & security, health & medicine and people-to-people ties.
List of Outcomes: Official visit of PM @LawrenceWongST of Singapore to India pic.twitter.com/YYqrN2zt0Z
— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) September 4, 2025
Commitment to combat terrorism
Prime Minister Narendra Modi thanked Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong for their sympathy towards the victims of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. PM Modi said that both the nations share similar concerns regarding terrorism, and fighting terrorism is the duty of all humanitarian countries.
Both leaders also reaffirmed their strong commitment to combat terrorism, including cross-border terrorism, in all its forms and manifestations, and reiterating zero-tolerance to terrorism. They agreed strengthen cooperation to fight against global and regional terrorism and terror organizations, including those proscribed by the UNSC 1267 Sanctions Committee and against terror financing, through bilateral mechanisms, FATF and other multilateral platforms;
Economic and trade cooperation
Both leaders agreed to foster higher trade and market access by considering the mutual trade priorities. They accepted to further work on the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement(CECA).
Trade and investment are important aspects of India-Singapore ties. PM Wong and I discussed ways to deepen these linkages. Other topics included technology, semiconductors, defence, skill development, water resources, green shipping and more. pic.twitter.com/8Iqh1KpvzG
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 4, 2025
Building Semiconductor ecosystem and industrial parks
Singapore agreed to support the growth of India’s semiconductor industry and ecosystem including through cooperation under the India-Singapore Semiconductor Policy Dialogue; Agreement was also signed for advancing resilient semiconductor supply chains and exploring mutually beneficial research and development collaborations.
MoUs were also inked to jointly develop sustainable industrial parks and next-generation industrial parks with advanced manufacturing capabilities, including through facilitating ventures and partnerships, government-to-government cooperation in knowledge sharing, capacity training, green standards implementation, master planning, and promotion;
Collaboration in the space sector
Agreement was also signed to foster partnership in the space sector, including between the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) and the Office for Space Technology & Industry, Singapore. Cooperation will also be pursued with respect to space policy and law, research and development activities in areas of mutual interest such as Earth observation and satellite communication technologies and applications.
Deepening Cooperation in the digital domain
MoUs were also signed to strengthen Digital Finance and Fin-tech cooperation between India and Singapore, as well as in the domain of cyber security and capital market linkages, including through the Fin-tech Joint Working Group. The prescribed groupings would share experiences and exchange technical expertise in digital solutions, and explore their implementation through pilot projects. The aim is also to ensure capacity building in the domain of cyber security.
Nourishing the MSME Ecosystem
Both leaders agreed to enhance collaboration between start-up and Small and Medium Enterprise ecosystems of Singapore and India with the specific aim of facilitating partnerships in the digital domain.
Cooperation between GIFT City and Singapore Cooperation
Regarding GIFT City-Singapore cooperation, officials from relevant agencies and regulatory authorities in India and Singapore, to convene a Joint Working Group to kick-start discussions on the framework, as well as to identify and trial potential use cases.
Agreement on Artificial Intelligence(AI)
Deals were inked to explore cooperation on Artificial Intelligence through the sharing of best practices for developing AI-ready data sets and building data-driven AI use cases in sectors such as agriculture, health care, and education.
Connectivity and defence cooperation
Agreements were signed to support the establishment of an India-Singapore Green and Digital Shipping Corridor (GDSC) between the Port of Singapore and ports in India to deepen maritime connectivity and work towards the establishment of a green maritime fuel corridor.
Also, an MoU was reached to deepen ecosystem collaboration in India’s growing aviation and aerospace MRO sectors. Both sides also committed to enhancing cooperation on Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) towards promoting cleaner and sustainable energy solutions in the aviation sector.
With respect to defence cooperation, both sides encourage continued exchanges on defence and security cooperation at all levels, including regular meetings between the two Defence Ministers through the Defence Ministers’ Dialogue Continued military cooperation and exchanges through the joint conduct of army, naval, and air force exercises in various formats were also agreed upon.
Agreement was also signed to deepen cooperation in the domain of emerging defence technology. Both leaders’ also agreed to work for a free, open, inclusive Indo-Pacific domain.
Cooperation on skill development initiatives
The Singaporean Prime Minister also reaffirmed Singapore’s commitment to supporting India’s skill development initiatives and collaborating on advanced manufacturing projects.
Notably, this includes establishing a National Centre of Excellence for Skilling in Chennai, with Singaporean institutions providing consultancy services and undertaking turn-key projects.
Singapore: A catalyst to reach ASEAN
The two prime ministers also discussed India’s relations with ASEAN as Singapore has always been an important partner in India’s Act-East policy. Both countries are also working on reviewing the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA). Singapore has agreed to help explain India’s position to the rest of the ASEAN partners in terms of the need to arrive at a reviewed arrangement that can result in a win-win situation for both sides. India has expressed concerns over the growing trade deficit with ASEAN countries and the need to work towards a balanced trade arrangement.
Meanwhile, both leaders appreciated the sustained expansion in bilateral trade, which has grown from about USD 6.7 billion in 2004-05 to nearly USD 35 billion in 2024-25. The two leaders also jointly inaugurated the JN Port PSA Mumbai Terminal (BMCT) Phase-II in the presence of officials from both countries.
🇮🇳-🇸🇬| Strengthening maritime infrastructure & regional connectivity.
PM @narendramodi and PM @LawrenceWongST jointly inaugurated Phase-2 development of the Bharat Mumbai Container Terminal (BMCT), developed in partnership with Singapore, at Navi Mumbai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Port… pic.twitter.com/OMych2FnoL
— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) September 4, 2025
Singapore Prime Minister also emphasized the strength of the bilateral relationship and asserted that both countries draw strength from shared history and the friendship and trust between people and he also claimed that together both nations can strengthen resilience, seize new opportunities and contribute to stability and growth in the respective region and beyond.
Wong expressed optimism about future cooperation and stated that he looks forward to working hand in hand with Prime Minister Modi to bring the Singapore-India partnership to even greater heights in the years ahead.
