India-Singapore Partnership in the 21st Century

Abstract

India’s rebranded “Act East Policy” has led to a vibrant cooperation under the growing economic relations between India and Singapore in the 21st Century. During the Cold War, Singapore, a natural ally of India remained friendly playing a buffer role in trying to bring India towards other Southeast Asian countries. Although the bilateral relations remained constant they were neither substantial nor warm during the Cold War due to ideological differences. After the launching of India’s “Look East Policy”, India’s relation with ASEAN increases and ASEAN plays a considerable role for the development of bilateral cooperation between India and Singapore. This paper examines Indo-Singapore economic relations as impacted by the growing development of India-ASEAN relations.