S.Korea plays India’s national anthem as Rajnath Singh receives Guard of Honour

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Seoul: India’s national anthem was played out at the Ministry of National Defence here on Thursday as Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh received the Guard of Honour by the Tri-Services ahead of a bilateral meeting with his South Korean counterpart Jeong Kyeong-Doo.

Earlier in the day, the Defence Minister addressed a special session of ‘Seoul Defence Dialogue’ in the South Korean capital and gave new mantras to build an open and inclusive architecture in the Indo-Pacific region.

“If we work together on the basis of the five principles that have characterised Indian thought and policies for centuries – the principles of Samman (respect), Samvad (dialogue), Sahayog (cooperation), Shanti (peace) and Samriddhi (prosperity), our success is assured,” the Defence Minister tweeted.

The Union Minister who arrived here on Wednesday with an aim to intensify defence and security ties also outlined that defence diplomacy is “a key pillar of India’s strategic toolkit.” “In fact, defence diplomacy and maintaining a strong defence force are two sides of the same coin,” he added.

The Defence Minister also laid a wreath at the National Cemetery in Seoul today. Upon his arrival here yesterday, Singh met South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-Yon and discussed a wide range of issues pertaining to bilateral ties.

The two leaders further noted with appreciation that South Korea’s ‘New Southern Policy’ and India’s ‘Act East Policy’ shared the same perspective and goals. The elevation of bilateral relations to a Special Strategic Partnership in 2015 has heralded a new era in India-Korea relations.

Prime Minister Lee expressed that the South Korean government’s desire for active cooperation with India in diplomatic as well as national security and defence policy arenas.

Later, the Defence Minister is further scheduled to attend a CEO’s Forum today followed by a Business-to-Government (B2G) meeting with the participation of members of the Defence Industry from both sides with an aim to encourage co-operation between defence Industry of India and the Republic of Korea.