Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Singaporean counterpart Tony Tan Keng Yam have inked a deal cementing their "customized" bilateral relations by building and enhancing their partnership for all-round cooperation and stepping up their negotiations to come up with a reasonable and beneficial free trade agreement (FTA).

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The agreement was signed hours after visiting President Xi arrived in the garden state of Singapore on Friday.

Political analysts said Singapore, of all countries, has an exceptional relationship with China, learning from each other and being there for one another when situations are going well or even when the going gets tough.

Zheng Yongnian, director of East Asia Institute of the National University of Singapore, said the fact that bilateral relations with China is "keeping pace with the times". He underscored the kind of  beneficial relations the two nations have enjoyed over the years.

Observers have noted how Singapore played a major role at different stages of China's modernization, with Chinese cities replicating Singapore's success while the latter continues to find new opportunities to enhance their cooperation.

When China embarked on the journey to modernization back in 1978, then Chinese vice premier Deng Xiaoping went to Singapore and met with administration officials to seek help in transforming China into an economic giant and to this day, Deng's efforts proved to be worthwhile.

In one of his well known speeches in 1992, Deng praised Singapore saying it was the best model to learn from in its drive to open up and initiate major reforms.

"Singapore acted as a think tank for China's reform and opening-up in the 1980s. From the 1990s to the first generation of the 21st century, the city state played a vital role in China's drive to seek foreign capitals and industrialization," said Chen Gang, a research fellow with the East Asia Institute of NUS, citing the Suzhou Industrial Park as a solid example.

The Suzhou Industrial Park, established in 1994, was the first project entered into by China and Singapore. It was regarded as a model for China's collaboration with foreign countries.

The United States has pumped in $26.7 billion in foreign investments and more than 90 companies that have made it to the Forbes List invested in the industrial park.

TagsSingaporean President Tony Tan Keng Yam, State Visit, FTA