Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Sultan of Brunei Darussalam Hassanal Bolkiah. (File)
New Delhi:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will become the first-ever Indian Prime Minister to visit Brunei when he travels to the country on a bilateral visit on September 3-4, in a move seen as a major step in strengthening ties between the two countries.
“PM Modi will visit Brunei on September 3 and 4 on the invitation of His Majesty Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah. This will be the first ever bilateral visit by an Indian PM to Brunei,” the Ministry of External Affairs said during the special briefing on the Prime Minister's visit.
Prime Minister Modi's visit coincides with the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between India and Brunei.
Prime Minister Modi was earlier scheduled to attend the sixth summit of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), scheduled to be held in Bangkok on September 3-4. The summit was postponed last week due to the formation of the new government in the country.
Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Brunei comes almost a decade after he first met Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah in November 2014 on the sidelines of the 25th ASEAN Summit in Myanmar. They met again during the 2017 East Asia Summit held in the Philippines.
In July, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his Brunei counterpart in Laos on the sidelines of ASEAN meetings. To mark 40 years of diplomatic relations, the two also launched a joint logo.
PM Modi’s visit will focus on strengthening trade ties and boosting cooperation in the space and defence sectors. India already has several agreements with Brunei in the space sector and also has a telemetry station in the country. PM’s visit will help boost cooperation in this area, the MEA said.
India and Brunei also want to strengthen their ties in the area of energy security in the areas of crude oil and hydrocarbons.
Currently, India imports $270 million worth of crude oil from Brunei. Brunei has also played a major role in bringing India closer to ASEAN by serving as the Country Coordinator for India from 2012 to 2015. Brunei has supported India's 'Act East Policy'.
On defence, the Ministry of Defence said: “We are still in discussions with Brunei to establish a joint working group on defence.”
Indian Navy and Coast Guard ships have been visiting Brunei regularly and two Indian defence companies – Bharat Electronics Ltd and MKU Limited – participated for the first time in the Defence Industry Exposition organised by the Brunei Armed Forces in June 2024. Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah and Crown Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah visited the Indian stands during the expo and appreciated the participation of the Indian companies.
According to the MEA, there are currently around 14,500 Indians living in Brunei Darussalam, out of a total population of around 450,500. More than half of the Indian expatriates are low-skilled and unskilled workers, working in the oil and gas industry, construction and retail.
