Search 1st June, 2018 Spotlight Analysis here: http://www.newsonair.com/Main_Audio_Bulletins_Search.aspx
TOPIC: General Studies 2:
- India and the World
- Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.
- Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora.
The close ties between India and Singapore have a history rooted in strong commercial, cultural and people-to-people links, with Singapore being a part of the “Greater India” cultural and commercial region. More than 300,000 people of Indian origin live in Singapore.
Historical connection: India’s connection with Singapore dates back to the Cholas.
Modern historical connection: The more modern relationship is attributed to Sir Stamford Raffles who, in 1819, established a trading station in Singapore on the route of the Straits of Malacca which became a colony under British India, governed from Calcutta (1830-1867). The colonial connection is reflected in a similarity of institutions and practices, usage of English and the presence of a large Indian community.
Present Connection: India-Singapore relations are based on shared values and approaches, economic opportunities and convergence of interests on key issues.
India was one of the first countries to recognize Singapore in 1965.
Singapore was one of the first to respond to India’s “Look East” Policy of expanding its economic, cultural and strategic ties in Southeast Asia to strengthen its standing as a regional power. India’s economic reforms in 1990s and the Look East Policy provided opportunities to recreate a new framework for cooperation, which included the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) of 2005.
India and Singapore have signed the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) and strategic-relationship agreement in order to increase trade, investments and economic cooperation, and expanded bilateral cooperation on maritime security, training forces, and joint naval exercises, developing military technology and fighting terrorism.
This robust relationship was elevated to a Strategic Partnership during the visit of Prime Minister Modi in November 2015 who signed a Joint Declaration on a Strategic Partnership with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.
Singapore is India’s second largest trading partner among the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asia Nations
The 5-S Plank – Five areas of cooperation to enhance bilateral relations – 5S Plank directs the relationship towards –
The ties between Singapore and India are getting closer, particularly when it comes to strategic cooperation. The two states inked
In addition, economic interactions between Singapore and India are durable, based on the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) signed in 2005 and the amendment of the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement, signed in December 2016. Almost 8,000 Indian companies have registered in the city-state so far, making India the largest foreign corporate contingent in Singapore.
