SIMBEX 2018: Singapore Defence Minister Visits India
To meet defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman for bilateral engagement on the sidelines of SIMBEX 2018
The defence minister of Singapore, NG Eng Hen, arrived in Port Blair on 20 November from Visakhapatnam, to interact with the Andaman & Nicobar Command, on the sidelines of Singapore India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX) 2018.
NG Eng Hen is slated to attend the Defence Ministers’ Dialogue to be held in Visakhapatnam on 19 and 20 November 2018. He will be joined by the Indian counterpart, defence minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, in Visakhapatnam for a bilateral meeting on the same day.
During his visit to the Andamans, Eng Hen will meet the Lt. Governor of Andaman Nicobar Islands, Adm. DK Joshi and other high rank officials, and he will be briefed on the strategic dimensions of the region, along with the role of Andaman & Nicobar Command.
The bilateral exercise between India and Singapore, SIMBEX 2018, is currently underway in Visakhapatnam. The Navy Chiefs of the two countries also interacted on 19 November aboard INS Sahyadri amid the silver jubilee commemoration ceremony to mark the 25th edition of SIMBEX. Both chief of naval staff Adm. Sunil Lanba and chief of the Republic of Singapore Navy Rear Admiral Lew Chuen Hong, hailed the friendship and acknowledged the growing mutual cooperation between the armed forces of the two nations.
India and Singapore have agreed to undertake continuous and institutionalised naval engagements in their shared maritime space, including establishing maritime exercises with like-minded regional/ASEAN partners. This year’s bilateral exercise has been the largest in terms of scale and complexity, with the participation of record number of vessels.