New Delhi: India and Brunei Darussalam agreed Wednesday to strengthen their defence ties, explore potential cooperation in the supply of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and renewable energies, and deepen their long-standing space partnership, during the two-day visit of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the South East Asian country.
“Under the energy sector, we discussed the potential for long term cooperation in LNG. To strengthen our defence cooperation, we held constructive dialogue on possibilities of cooperation in defence industry, training and capacity building,” Modi said at the banquet hosted by Haji Hassanal Bolkiah, the Sultan of Brunei.
“To strengthen our cooperation in the space sector, we have agreed on cooperation in satellite development, remote sensing, and training,” Modi added, according to a press statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
Modi’s visit to the South East Asian country—a first by an Indian Prime Minister—also saw the forty-year relationship raised to an enhanced partnership, underlining New Delhi’s emphasis on its Act East Policy.
The year 2024 is the tenth year since the Act East Policy was first outlined by Modi in 2014. Within the first 100 days of the new government, India has received visits from the prime ministers of Vietnam and Malaysia, while India’s President Droupadi Murmu made visits to Fiji, New Zealand and Timor-Leste.
Modi added at the banquet that India continues to give priority to the centrality of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to the region and supports the “freedom of navigation” and “overflight” under laws such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
“We agree that a Code of Conduct should be finalised in this region. We support the policy of development, and not expansionism,” Modi said, without naming China.
ASEAN has been negotiating a code of conduct in the South China Sea for the better part of the last two decades.
Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and China have overlapping maritime claims in the region, along with the self-governing territory of Taiwan. Tensions between the Philippines and China have increased, after a Chinese coast guard rammed into the flagship of Manila’s coast guard—BRP Teresa Magbanua—on 31 August.
The incident was the seventh fracas in August between the two countries in the South China Sea. However, China’s actions in the region have been ongoing for years. Its dispute with the Philippines saw a Filipino sailor injured earlier in the year.
“The leaders also urged all parties to resolve disputes through peaceful means in accordance with international law, particularly UNCLOS 1982,” the joint statement released by the MEA after the meeting between the two leaders said.
Burgeoning ties in space, energy discussed
For nearly three decades, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has been operating a telemetry, tracking and command station in Brunei.
According to the joint statement released by the MEA, the two leaders renewed the agreement for the operation of the ground station. “Both leaders appreciated the long-standing arrangement under the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two governments and the conclusion of the renewed MOU welcoming further cooperation in the areas of mutual interest under the MOU,” the joint statement said.
The first agreement between the two countries on the ground station was in 1997, which was established in 2000. In 2018, a second agreement was signed between the two countries, allowing India to operate and maintain the ground station in Brunei, which was setup to track ISRO’s satellite and space launches.
India’s Prime Minister and the Sultan of Brunei also discussed potential cooperation in the LNG energy sector. This comes as trade ties between the two countries have dipped in recent years, especially as India has found other sources for oil.
Between 2009-10 and 2019-20, India’s imports from Brunei consistently crossed $500 million, touching $800 million in a few years due to its need for oil.
However, since 2020-21, India’s imports from the South East Asian country has fallen to around $300 million, especially after the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, which has seen Moscow becoming an important energy partner for New Delhi.
