Kuala Lumpur [Malaysia], November 1 (ANI): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday met Singapore’s Minister for Defence, Chan Chun Sing, in Kuala Lumpur, where they discussed expanding India-Singapore defence cooperation.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the 12th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM-Plus), where Singh addressed the forum on “Reflection on 15 years of ADMM-Plus and Charting the Way Forward.”
“It was wonderful to exchange views with Singapore’s Minister for Defence Chan Chun Sing in Kuala Lumpur. We discussed expanding India-Singapore defence partnership. India is strongly committed to further strengthen our bilateral defence cooperation,” the Defence Minister said in a post on X.
Before his address at the forum, Rajnath Singh held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from New Zealand, South Korea, and Vietnam, underscoring India’s commitment to strengthening defence partnerships in the Indo-Pacific region.
Singh announced his engagements in a series of posts on X, where he extended an invitation to New Zealand Defence Minister Judith Collins to visit India and reaffirmed their shared vision of building a forward-looking partnership in defence.
“Glad to meet New Zealand’s Defence Minister Judith Collins in Kuala Lumpur. I extended her the invitation to visit India. Her visit will reaffirm the shared vision of India and New Zealand to build a forward-looking partnership in defence,” he said.
Singh also met South Korea’s Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back, describing it as “a delight to meet” him on the sidelines of the ADMM-Plus.
“It was a delight to meet South Korea’s Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back on the sidelines of ADMM-Plus in Kuala Lumpur,” he stated in a separate post.
He further shared that he was “happy to have met Defence Minister Phan Van Giang” of Vietnam in Kuala Lumpur, reflecting the growing defence ties between India and Vietnam—two key partners in the Indo-Pacific region.
Earlier on Friday, Singh met with the Defence Ministers of ASEAN during the second India-ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Informal Meeting.
During the meeting, the Ministers appreciated India’s key role in peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region and sought to deepen defence cooperation with New Delhi at the regional level.
In his address, Singh highlighted that the second India-ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Informal Meeting represents a strategic opportunity to advance the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between India and ASEAN, particularly in defence and security under the ASEAN-India Plan of Action for 2026–2030.
He announced two forward-looking initiatives — the ASEAN-India Initiative on Women in UN Peacekeeping Operations and the ASEAN-India Defence Think-Tank Interaction.
The Malaysian Defence Minister, as ADMM chair, welcomed Singh and described India as a superpower, stating that ASEAN, as a community, would benefit from deepening its engagement with India in cyber and digital defence, as well as in defence industry and innovation.
He complimented India’s ability to establish a self-reliant defence industry and technological research ecosystem, which can benefit ASEAN member states.
The Defence Minister of the Philippines praised India’s respect for international law and multilateralism, calling India a superpower.
Echoing similar sentiments, the Cambodian Defence Minister commended India’s rise and expressed gratitude for its contributions in training for UN Peacekeeping Operations, Humanitarian Mine Action (HMA), and Military Medicine.
Reiterating these sentiments, the Defence Minister of Singapore emphasised ASEAN’s faith in India’s capacity and capability to play a key role in ensuring peace and security in the region.
The Defence Minister of Thailand agreed that the ASEAN community would benefit from India’s defence industry and technology ecosystem and called for regional self-reliance in production. (ANI)
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