TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s Institute for National Defense and Security Research (INDSR) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with a university in India to promote exchanges and cooperation, reports said Friday (July 7).

The top defense think tank concluded the accord with Rashtriya Raksha University’s School of International Cooperation, Security and Strategic Languages (SICSSL) in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat Wednesday (July 5). The two sides will implement joint research projects, organize international conferences, and exchange publications and academics, per CNA.

INDSR Acting Deputy CEO Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), who signed the MOU on behalf of the Taiwan side, said the relationship could strengthen cooperation on security research. Speakers also noted the fact that Taiwan had opened a representative office in Mumbai was a sign of warming relations.

The project between the Taiwan think tank and India’s defense university was a breakthrough and a major step forward for the study of strategic security issues concerning the region, speakers said.