Transcript of Remarks by Minister(FA) Dr Vivian Balakrishnan at the Groundbreaking Ceremony of the India High Commission in Singapore's New Chancery (19 August 2026)

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19 August 2026

Transcript of Remarks by Minister(FA) Dr Vivian Balakrishnan at the Groundbreaking Ceremony of the India High Commission in Singapore's New Chancery (19 August 2026)

Dr and Mrs Jaishankar,

Minister of External Affairs of the Republic of India,

High Commissioner Dr Shilpak Ambule,

Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen.

First, let me wish Minister Jaishankar and your delegation, Happy Independence Day. It's a special honour to be here for this inauguration of this auspicious chancery - a new and expanded chancery. Dr Jaishankar just reminded us that the early leaders of India knew how to choose good sites, and you've listed out your addresses: Pierce Road, Grange Road, Stevens Road. It showed great foresight.

But having said that, we are also witnessing the laying of the foundations of a new and expanded chancery. And as Dr Jaishankar said, this is an icon. It's an icon of our relationship. That it's not just one based on the past - although there is a very deep reservoir of goodwill from the past - but one which is also focused on the current times and the opportunities of the future. Hence the rebuilding and the expansion.

Last year, we marked 60 years of diplomatic ties. Our President Tharman Shanmugaratnam made a State Visit [to India], and we also had the Official Visit of Prime Minister Lawrence Wong [to India]. We have embarked on a roadmap jointly launched by both Prime Ministers to implement our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership which was announced during Prime Minister Modi's Official Visit to Singapore in 2024. We've upgraded our relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. This reflects our strong and our growing ties as we navigate what is an increasingly turbulent, volatile and complex world.

And so, our relationship has grown significantly over the decades, underpinned by robust institutional linkages, strong people-to-people ties, and a recognition that we're in this together. There's much that we can achieve together, and therefore we can face the future with more confidence.

Over the years, we've witnessed a doubling of bilateral trade between India and Singapore since 2005. Singapore has maintained its position as India's top investor since 2018. I believe we contribute to almost a quarter of India's foreign investments. The India-Singapore Ministerial Roundtable, as Dr Jaishankar has just told you, will be meeting tomorrow. It is unique because [it is not easy] to corral four ministers in this day and age on both sides. Which means we've got to round up, between Dr Jaishankar and me, eight people and make the timetables work. I can tell you, it is a very complex undertaking just to be able to get everyone in the same room. But we do, and we get together every year. And I can honestly tell you the need to get together, and the trust and the openness in which we can share both our concerns and our ambitions, is unique and is essential.

As we in Singapore prepare to assume the Chairmanship of ASEAN next year, we also look forward to advancing the ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, and to welcome and build on India's continued commitment to engaging ASEAN. ASEAN and India are actually two of the world's fastest-growing regions. There is great potential, and we need to deepen our partnership in all the pillars: trade, connectivity, energy, digital economy, the green economy.

Our relations go beyond numbers, data, and economics, but also into the cultural and other traditional fields. Our Missions in India have brought joint cross-cultural productions to Chennai showcasing Indian and Southeast Asian dance, as well as - what's very important for us in Singapore - a Singapore Food Festival in Mumbai, featuring our favorites like chili crab and chicken rice. And in Singapore, High Commissioner Dr Shilpak Ambule has organised two very successful and popular Great Indian Biryani festivals, and continues to draw record crowds every year for the International Yoga Day. I guess we need to balance the exercise and the food.

So let me again extend my warmest congratulations to everyone, including Steven Siow [India High Commission Consultant], involved in this project. You've been engaged with Dr Jaishankar for decades, and I couldn't think of a better and more appropriate Minister to come back to Singapore in order to lay the foundation stone - a foundation stone base that reflects trust, a deep reservoir of goodwill, and also the clarity to face the future with confidence despite all the turbulence of the present. We look forward to its completion, and I wish all of you a very good day ahead. Thank you very much.

. . . . .

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

SINGAPORE

19 AUGUST 2026