Pay more for using military base: India
to Singapore
“We have asked for more money as costs have really gone
up...We hope to reach an agreement with Singapore soon, as we hope it will be
signed during (Singapore) Prime Minister’s visit (to India),” said a senior
government official. Singapore
has given high priority to its military preparedness following its bitter split
from Malaysia
in 1965.
In October 2007, India ,
for the first time, allowed a foreign country to station its troops and Defence
facilities on a long-term basis, which was a demonstration of India ’s reliance on Singapore as an anchor for its
‘Look East’ policy. The agreement for the conduct of joint military training in
India between the IAF and
the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) was signed in Delhi , as part of the annual Defence Policy
Dialogue.
Incidentally, India
and Singapore
have also signed a similar agreement for Army training, but it will come up for
renewal next year. For Singapore ,
which has an area of just 700 sq km, overseas training for its fighter pilots,
primarily flying F-16 fighter jets, is necessary in the absence of any suitable
open tracts of land and airspace.
“It has been a win-win situation for both sides. We get
upgraded facilities, while they get space to conduct their exercises,” said the
official.
In the past five years, Singapore
has set up its own facilities at Kalaikonda air base in West
Bengal , including residential block and stores.
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