India is Singapore's strategic economic partner: Minister

Bangalore, Apr 10 (UNI) India is the strategic economic partner of Singapore and India and China are like two wings for the city-state to achieve economic progress, Singapore Education Minister and second Minister for Finance Tharman Shanmugaratnam said today.

''Traditional ties with India have grown stronger over the years.

We are focusing on cities in these two countries to ensure a win-win situation for both the partners. Singapore's future lies in knowledge based industry and hence Bangalore, which has emerged as the major IT hub, apart from being a main centre for development of biotechnology and space science, will be its natural partner,'' he said.

Speaking on the sidelines of the tenth anniversary celebrations of International Tech Park Bangalore (ITPB), promoted by Singaporean infrastructure developer Ascendas here, Mr Shanmugaratnam said Singapore was interested in India's rich pool of talent. ''We want to make sure that this pool will benefit the two partner countries.

Singapore has seen a spurt in Indian IT and other knowledge based companies in the recent past. Both the countries support open societies and this is a plus factor.'' He said the success of Ascendas in India mirrored the excellent relations that have been built up between the two countries. ITPB had not only been a landmark IT destination for India and Karnataka, but also stood as a successful ambassador for the Singapore brand.

UNI