The Chief of Naval Staff of the Indian Navy, Admiral (ADM) R. Hari Kumar called on Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen this morning. During their meeting, Dr Ng and ADM Kumar reaffirmed the strong and long-standing bilateral defence ties between Singapore and India. They also discussed regional security developments and the importance of leveraging multilateral platforms for confidence building. The call was conducted on the sidelines of the 13th International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference (IMDEX) Asia.

ADM Kumar is in Singapore from 1 to 4 May 2023 for his introductory visit. On 1 May 2023, he received a brief on Singapore's history and visited the Kranji War Memorial. On 2 May 2023, he inspected the Guard of Honour at the Ministry of Defence, before calling on Chief of Defence Force Rear-Admiral (RADM) Aaron Beng and Chief of Navy RADM Sean Wat. Thereafter, he visited the Information Fusion Centre (IFC) at RSS Singapura - Changi Naval Base (CNB), where he was briefed on how the IFC contributes towards maritime security by cueing operational responses from regional navies through information sharing. Thereafter, he co-officiated the opening ceremony for the inaugural ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise with RADM Wat, before visiting the RSN's Formidable-class Frigate RSS Supreme. ADM Kumar will also attend the 8th edition of the International Maritime Security Conference (IMSC) on 4 May 2023.

ADM Kumar's visit underscores the strong and long-standing bilateral defence relations between Singapore and India. The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) and Indian Navy interact regularly through bilateral exercises, professional exchanges, visits and cross attendance of courses. These mutually beneficial interactions have deepened the bilateral defence relationship, enhanced mutual understanding and strengthened the cooperation between the two navies.