Singapore’s Prez to arrive in India on 3-day visit on Sunday

New Delhi

Singapore’s President Tan Keng Yam will arrive here on Sunday on a three-day visit to hold talks with the top Indian leadership and to mark the golden jubilee of bilateral ties.

This is the first visit by a Singaporean President in 12 years. India and Singapore are celebrating 50 years of diplomatic relations this year.

Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong had congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his Lok Sabha election victory on Twitter and FaceBook.

In response, Modi had hailed Singapore as a valued friend and expressed confidence that bilateral ties will become stronger.

Singapore is India’s largest trade and investment partner in ASEAN, accounting for a third of India’s overall trade with ASEAN.

Economic and commercial ties have expanded significantly, particularly after the conclusion of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) in 2005.

CECA with Singapore was the first such agreement to be signed by India with any country.

Ethnic Indians constitute about 9.1 per cent of the total population of 5.4 million, including permanent residents.

In recognition of their contribution towards promotion of India-Singapore relations, the Indian government has bestowed Padma Shri to Ambassador Gopinath Pillai, Chairman, Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore, and Satpal Khattar, prominent lawyer and businessman.

Former Singaporean President S R Nathan was awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award in 2012.

Sri Lankan President to visit India from Feb 15

New Delhi

In his first foreign visit after assuming charge, Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena will arrive in India on February 15 on a four-day visit during which he will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discuss key issues including peace and reconciliation process in his country.

All bilateral matters including economy, peace and reconciliation in Sri Lanka apart from the perennial issues will be discussed during the meeting between the two leaders, the Spokesperson in the External Affairs Ministry said in New Delhi.

India has been hoping that the new government will develop Lanka on the “foundation of genuine and effective reconciliation” creating harmony between all sections there.”

Prime Minister Modi had yesterday tweeted that he was looking forward to the visit of President Sirisena to India.

According to Sirisena’s office, the President will leave on February 15?and will remain in India?until February 18.

The 63-year-old leader will also travel to Buddhist pilgrimage site Bodh Gaya and Hindu temple in Tirupathi before returning to Sri Lanka, the statement said.

Sirisena, who dethroned Mahinda Rajapaksa after a bitter presidential poll on January 9, has indicated that he wants to have closer relations with India.

He will also meet with President Pranab Mukherjee and other party leaders.

In his address on the Sri Lanka’s 67th anniversary of independence, Sirisena yesterday said that his government would pursue a foreign policy of neutrality to win over the international community to develop the island.

His predecessor Rajapaksa’s administration had a record of soured ties with India, which had supported US- backed UN Human Rights Council resolutions against Sri Lanka.

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