By Prashanth Parameswaran
Defense MoU concluded during historic visit.
India and Brunei inked a new defense pact this week during a historic visit by the Indian vice-president to the Southeast Asian state.
As I reported for The Diplomat last month, Indian Vice-President Hamid Ansari was scheduled to embark on a five-day visit to Brunei and Thailand from February 1 to 5 to deepen ties with the Southeast Asian states. His trip to Brunei from February 1 to 3 was the first high-level visit to the tiny, oil-rich sultanate from India since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1984 (See: “India’s Vice-President to Visit Thailand, Brunei in February“).
According to a joint statement, India and Brunei signed a defense memorandum of understanding (MoU) that includes four major areas: exchange of visits at different levels; exchange of experience, information, and training; conduct of joint military exercises, seminars and discussions; and cooperation between defense industries.
The agreement was signed by Anil Wadhwa, the secretary at India’s Ministry of External Affairs, and Suriya binti Haji Umar, the permanent secretary at Brunei’s defense ministry.
Read the full story at The Diplomat