Visiting Singaporean Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan held talks with his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj in New Delhi, India on 31 October .

Singaporean Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan (L) shakes hands with his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj (Source: VNA)

The talks formed part of the India-Singapore Joint Ministerial Committee.  The two sides discussed a wide range of bilateral issues of shared interests and concerns.

The two officials reviewed upcoming high-level exchanges and the celebration of the 50^th anniversary of the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and 25 years of the ASEAN-India dialogue partnership.  They also discussed cooperation in tourism and culture, connectivity and other aspects of the partnership.

Besides, the ministers exchanged views on regional and multilateral issues of mutual concerns, including cooperation in the United Nations and international organisations.

Balakrishnan is due to visit Guwahati city in India’s Assam state on 1 November.  He will meet with Assam Chief Minister Sarbanda Sonawal and witness the signing ceremony of the agreements related to the North East Skills Centre (NESC) in Guwahati.

Singapore and India will hold a number of mutual visits at ministerial level this month. Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry Suresh Prabhu and Minister of Finance Arun Jaitley will visit Singapore from 13-15 November.

Meanwhile, Singaporean Minister for Trade and Industry S Israwan is scheduled to visit Andhra Pradesh state and New Delhi from 16 November.  Minister for Defence Ng Eng Heng will tour New Delhi from 27-29 November.

(Source: VNA)