Singapore's Foreign Minister, Mr K. Shanmugam, will embark on a four-day trip to India today to further strengthen bilateral relations and identify new areas of cooperation between the two nations.
Mr Shanmugam would co-chair the second meeting of the Joint Ministerial Committee for Bilateral Cooperation with his Indian counterpart, Mr S.M. Krishna, tomorrow.
This would be Mr Shanmugam’s first visit to India since he assumed the post, a Singapore Foreign Ministry statement said.
During his stay till May 10, he would hold a series of high-level meetings besides the Joint Ministerial Committee, a platform for both sides to review bilateral relations and identify new areas of cooperation.
Mr Shanmugam, who is also the city state’s Law Minister, would call on the Vice-President, Mohammad Hamid Ansari, the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, and Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Ms Meira Kumar, the statement said.
He would also meet the Law Minister, Mr Salman Khurshid, the Delhi Chief Minister, Ms Sheila Dikshit, Members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, as well as members of business community.
As part of his introductory visit, Mr Shanmugam would travel to Assam and Gujarat, where he would meet the chief ministers, Mr Tarun Gogoi and Mr Narendra Modi, respectively and obtain first-hand insights into the priorities, opportunities and challenges in these states.