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Investment in India will be affected: Lee

SINGAPORE: The terrorist attacks in Mumbai “will have fallout on India’s investment climate and international confidence [in India] for some time to come,” according to Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

Mr. Lee’s comment is significant given that Singapore has played a pivotal role in facilitating India’s membership of the key forum of East Asia Summit.

It has also promoted India’s engagement with the Association of South East Asian Nations.

Having sent a personal letter of “deepest condolences” to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Mr. Lee said India’s “complex environment” was made up of “complicated … politics” as also racial, religious, and security issues that “are difficult to resolve.”

Earlier, the Foreign Ministry advised Singaporeans to postpone travelling to Mumbai, if they “do not have a pressing need.” Shortly afterwards, they were asked to “avoid all non-essential travel to India” as a whole.

Australia, whose nationals were prominent among the foreigners affected in Mumbai, also issued a travel advisory. Australians were asked to “reconsider [their] need to travel to India overall’ and not travel at all to Jammu and Kashmir for now.

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