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Mr Chairman,
1 It has been a very busy year. As always, we are trying to secure our place in a very volatile and I would say, dangerous world. The key issues confronting us: first, COVID-19 and its aftermath; second, navigating major power rivalry, fostering peace, upholding international law, strengthening multilateralism; third, protecting the global commons, including addressing non-traditional challenges; fourth, nurturing Singapore’s relations with our neighbours; and fifth, ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations).
Post-COVID-19
2 First, let me deal with COVID because Mr Vikram Nair, Mr Desmond Choo and Mr Lim Biow Chuan have asked how COVID-19 affected our foreign policy. The pandemic has impacted, in fact, disrupted the lives of many overseas Singaporeans. MFA’s duty in the last two years has been to make sure that we left no Singaporean behind. I say that again, we left no Singaporean behind. We helped to bring home more than 4600 Singaporeans who had difficulty getting back for some reason or the other, in the last two years. MFA also supported the launch of Vaccinated Travel Lanes (VTLs) and the mutual recognition of health certificates in order to facilitate the safe resumption of international travel.
3 Singapore has also supported global COVID-19 vaccination, because no one is safe until everyone is safe in the world. We have contributed to the COVAX Advance Market Commitment and the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund. I would add that we donated our entitlements to our neighbours. We also responded quickly to urgent medical needs by sending medical supplies, including more than 500 tonnes of liquid oxygen to Indonesia through our “Oxygen Shuttle” programme and 120,000 vaccine doses to Batam and the Riau Islands, as well as 100,000 and 200,000 vaccine doses to Malaysia and Brunei respectively. We also sent a consignment of 256 oxygen cylinders to support India’s pandemic response at the height of its second wave last April.
4 I wish to commend the dedication of all MFA staff, both those serving in Singapore as well as in our Overseas Missions. Over 300 MFA officers have served Singapore at our Overseas Missions during this period and I am very proud that not a single officer has asked to leave post because of the risk of the pandemic. Despite our best efforts and health precautions, about 40 of our officers serving overseas as well as another 150 foreigners who are employed by our Missions overseas did succumb to COVID. Fortunately, they have recovered but again it is a symbol of their commitment and their willingness to sacrifice for the sake of Singapore and Singaporeans, and we owe them a big debt of gratitude.
5 COVID-19 will not be the last or even the worst pandemic faced by the world and so, we will continue to work with the international community, including especially through the WHO, in order to strengthen the global health architecture and to enhance pandemic preparedness and resilience and the ability to cooperate as a single world.
6 Let me move on to the next aspect: major power rivalry, fostering peace, upholding international law and multilateralism. The ongoing developments in Ukraine are a stark reminder of the vulnerability of small states when confronted by a larger and more powerful opponent.
7 Mr Vikram Nair, Mr Lim Biow Chuan, Mr Eric Chua, Ms Janet Ang and Mr Baey Yam Keng have all asked very salient questions about multilateralism, about the world order and about big power rivalry. In my ministerial statement on 28 February, I explained why we have to be such a staunch supporter of international law and the principles enshrined in the UN (United Nations) Charter. We must take a stand against actions that clearly violate the sovereignty, political independence, and the territorial integrity of another country，of all countries, because ultimately this is also about us as a tiny city-state. When push comes to shove, smaller countries like Singapore must be prepared to defend ourselves and not get caught up in the geopolitical games of big powers. We do not take sides, but we do take a stand to uphold existential principles. We make common cause with our neighbours, and our friends within ASEAN and in the UN General Assembly to the maximum extent possible. For instance, last night, there was an overwhelming vote; 141 countries at the UN General Assembly voted in favour of the resolution. ASEAN, all our Ministers, I can tell you, were up till 1 or 2 am last night communicating and we will shortly be issuing an ASEAN statement calling for an immediate ceasefire. We continue to try to get humanitarian assistance to Ukraine and of course we continue to monitor the evacuation of Singaporeans in Ukraine. We have got another further three Singaporeans out; there are still six left there.
8 Let me say a few words about the strategic competition between the US and China. This has intensified across multiple domains, and quite frankly, the strategic choices of both these countries will shape the emerging international order profoundly.
9 Under President (Joe) Biden, US foreign policy has become, in a sense, more predictable. However, its fundamental approach and the policies of the US towards China basically remain unchanged. In fact, the sanctions against Chinese entities have not been relaxed, but have become even tougher. Both political parties in America, as well as the business community, and even the society at large, have come to generally view China as a direct threat to the United States’ interests. This is compounded by the fact that the US has never, in its history, faced a peer competitor on such a scale.
10 On China’s part, there is a growing perception that the US is a declining power reacting defensively and aggressively to China’s inevitable growth and progress. China is promoting its own constructs to broaden and deepen its relations with other countries in the world, through international schemes such as the Belt and Road Initiative and more recently, the Global Development Initiative. However, China will want to avoid being seen to be pressured into making concessions in its policies or posture, out of a concern that any concessions on its part will only lead to continued or even increased pressure from other countries.
11 So, the US and China’s relationship is fraught with many spiky issues and this is complicated by domestic considerations, and the distrust and rivalry have intensified over the past few years. Trade and economic issues can be negotiated, and compromises found. However, disagreements cast in moralistic or ideological terms on issues like human rights or political systems quickly lead to deadlocks where no compromise is possible. We hope both countries will accept that there is a need to reset their postures, to work out a new modus vivendi, and to reduce zero-sum competition. Otherwise, it will be very difficult for them to cooperate constructively, even where their interests are aligned.
12 How the US and China compete and cooperate will determine not just their trajectories, but that of the rest of the world. It would be disastrous for both powers to focus on what they call “extreme competition”, or even outright confrontation. And the old Cold War strategy of ‘containment’ will not be viable. We therefore welcome efforts by both the US and China to engage at the highest levels, to cooperate on global challenges like climate change and the digital age. And we encourage greater people-to-people engagement as travel restrictions are removed, in order to foster generations, especially younger people in both the US and China, to understand and to appreciate each other’s values, attitudes, strengths, and weaknesses. We hope that these interactions will encourage greater trust and pave the way forward for a more constructive relationship. As former Secretary of State George Shultz wisely observed, and this is worth remembering, “Trust is the coin of the realm. When trust was in the room…good things happened. When trust was not in the room, good things did not happen. Everything else is details.”
13 On Singapore’s part, we enjoy excellent ties, and in fact I may add, high levels of trust, with both the US and China, and we have been able to maintain high-level interactions even amidst COVID-19 over the past two years. In 2021 alone, we welcomed visits by US Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. I also made a working visit to Washington, where I met with my counterpart Secretary of State Antony Blinken. President Biden will be hosting an ASEAN-US Summit in Washington later this month. We have also maintained intensive engagements with our Chinese counterparts, including through mutual support when we both needed it during the worst moments of COVID-19, as well as bilateral cooperation at the Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation meeting co-chaired by DPM Heng in December last year. Since 2020 – and I double checked this number – I have met or spoken with my counterpart State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on nine occasions. So that is about once every three months. Our most recent engagement was in Beijing last month, when I accompanied President Halimah Yacob to the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics. There is also a standing invitation for President Halimah to make a State Visit to China.
14 It is in Singapore’s interest to continue to foster stronger ties with both the US and with China, and to be a consistent and reliable partner to both for the long term. We will continue to engage both powers through diplomacy grounded in fundamental principles such as adherence to international law, the resolution of disputes by peaceful means, respect for sovereignty, the sanctity of borders, and upholding a rules-based multilateral system. However, we make decisions based on our long-term national interests, and make it clear to both that we will not be a proxy, vassal state or cat’s paw for one side or the other. We have not shied away from standing up for ourselves and disagreeing on issues, when necessary; and we do not have the luxury of saying different things to different partners. So, Singapore strives to be straightforward, consistent, reliable, trustworthy. To this end, we will also work with all parties to uphold an open, inclusive, stable, peaceful, rules-based international order.
15 There were questions just now about the TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) and the Indo-Pacific Economic Forum by Mr Dennis Tan. I told my American interlocuters on numerous occasions that it was a mistake for the US to pull out of the TPP. It is still the highest level and most ambitious free trade agreement with safeguards not only for trade, for labour, for the environment, intellectual property, and the rest of it. But all my interlocuters in America have said they cannot do it because of domestic political reasons. In a sense, the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework is an alternative which they are trying to put beef on this framework. Let us see and let us encourage them but as I said, the key point I keep making and in fact the Prime Minister has made to multiple Presidents – in Asia, trade is strategy. So, let us watch how progress is made on this front. And I think it is also no accident that now you have got the UK, China, and Taiwan applying to join the CPTPP (Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership).
16 Mr Liang Eng Hwa asked why Singapore continues to place heavy emphasis on multilateralism, given that powerful states are often perceived to wield outsized influence at multinational platforms, and he asked whether we should just focus on bilateral and regional arrangements. Ms Janet Ang asked how Singapore’s foreign policy can remain independent while balancing and advancing our own national interests, and I think she even asked why we should be our brother’s keeper. Well, let me address these thematically.
17 We have spared no effort to strengthen the rules-based multilateral order, so that it continues to provide us with a platform to safeguard our interests. And that is why we worked with a cross-regional group of countries to establish the Forum of Small States (FOSS), which will celebrate its 30th anniversary this year. In today’s charged geopolitical context, it is even more important that small states continue to stand up for a stronger UN and a robust multilateral system that levels the playing field and takes all countries’ interests into account.
18 The rise of protectionism amidst COVID-19 has also underscored the importance of: one, upholding a free, open, and rules-based multilateral trading system as embodied by the WTO; second, deepening economic integration at multilateral fora such as APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) and G20; third diversifying trade relationships through regional arrangements such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, CPTPP for short, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, RCEP for short, and our latest free trade agreement, the Pacific Alliance-Singapore Free Trade Agreement. Such regional agreements facilitate more efficient, more diversified, and resilient supply chains. They increase access to global markets, encourage rules-based trading activity, and foster greater connectivity. Even in Singapore as we face pushback from some people against economic integration, it is important to re-double and reaffirm that this is an essential pillar for our economic strategy.
19 Third, let me deal with our international work on the global commons and non-traditional security challenges that have been raised. Countries are grappling with geopolitical flashpoints, insularism, and major power politics. Mr Seah Kian Peng reminded us and asked about Singapore’s approach to these emerging issues discussed at multilateral fora.
20 Well, there are certainly no shortage of emerging non-traditional issues. The ones which often come to mind – climate change, food security, emerging diseases, the challenges and problems of the digital economy and threats in cyberspace, and eventually and frankly, emerging, outer space as well. Again, our approach is that we believe in multilateralism, and we believe that these issues would be best pursued at multilateral fora, including the UN, APEC, G20 and ASEAN. Basically, an opportunity for us to work together, address the challenges and opportunities, deal with the dangers, and establish common standards, establish norms, rules, and ultimately and hopefully, norms for state behaviours. And this is the way, in a sense, how we can protect the global commons, public health, the oceans, the environment, cyberspace, and outer space. And actually Singapore has a history of outsized contributions in protecting the global commons.
21 For instance on cybersecurity, which is a clear and present threat right now, we clearly need to work with the international community towards arriving at a global consensus, including through the creation of a multilateral architecture in cyberspace. We are members of both the UN Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on Cybersecurity, in fact this is chaired by Singapore, and the UN Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) on Cybersecurity to foster understanding and collaboration on the development of new governance principles, frameworks and standards.
22 Climate change, we all know is an existential threat to mankind, and as a small city-state, we are exquisitely vulnerable to the impact of climate change. Encouraging progress was made at the most recent 26th Conference of the Parties, and I am sure Minister Grace Fu will explain, but in case she is too humble, let me say that she and her team have continued this tradition of being excellent ministerial facilitators, honest brokers, and arriving at consensus and making progress for the world.
23 Similarly, this year also marks the 40th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). And amidst all the oceans-related challenges today, we will continue to affirm the primacy and universality of UNCLOS, which sets out the legal framework for all activities in the oceans. Notwithstanding Singapore’s small size, our pioneers, including Ambassador-at-Large Professor Tommy Koh, played an outsized role, and helped to bring UNCLOS to fruition, 40 years ago. So we continue to play a constructive role in oceans-related issues, and right now, Ambassador Rena Lee has been President of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Intergovernmental Conference since 2018. Most people may not be aware of this, but this is another offshoot of UNCLOS.
24 Fourth, peace and stability in our immediate neighbourhood are absolutely critical. And our relations with our closest neighbours, Indonesia and Malaysia, will always be of special importance.
25 Ms Rachel Ong asked about the outcomes of the Singapore-Indonesia Leaders’ Retreat in January and how these will affect the trajectory of our bilateral relations.
26 I think you all know Singapore and Indonesia are close partners. We enjoy a substantive and multifaceted relationship. The Leaders’ Retreat held in January marked a significant milestone in our bilateral relations. SM Teo delivered a Ministerial Statement last month explaining the significance of the agreements that Singapore and Indonesia signed to address longstanding bilateral issues, namely the Flight Information Region (FIR), defence cooperation, and the extradition of fugitives. The FIR Agreement will uphold the safety and efficiency of air traffic in our region in a manner that is consistent with ICAO rules, and meet the civil aviation needs of both countries. The Defence Cooperation Agreement will strengthen cooperation between our two armed forces. It will provide clarity on the arrangements for the SAF’s training in the Indonesian archipelagic and territorial waters and airspace, which is conducted with full respect for Indonesia’s sovereignty while preserving Singapore’s rights under UNCLOS. The Extradition Treaty will enhance cooperation in combating crime and send a positive signal to investors. Both countries also exchanged letters to undertake that these agreements will enter into force simultaneously. This set of mutually beneficial and durable agreements shows the strength and maturity of our bilateral relationship. It illustrates our commitment to resolving longstanding bilateral matters in an open and constructive manner, for the long-term benefit of our peoples. PM Lee and President Joko Widodo both expressed the desire to ratify and bring these agreements into force soon.
27 PM Lee and President Joko Widodo also had good discussions on new areas of collaboration, including the green economy, renewable energy, and human capital development. We look forward to making progress on all these fronts. The key point is that we can steadily resolve old issues and we can open up new areas with win-win outcomes.
28 Mr Chong Kee Hiong asked about Malaysia. For Malaysia, I want to tell you that we have maintained our very close relationship and I would say it’s probably even been strengthened by our shared experience of COVID-19. Malaysia is our closest neighbour and bilateral engagements continued both formally and informally throughout this pandemic. Our Ministers have been communicating via WhatsApp, letters, phone calls, and video calls. And most importantly, at times of greatest need, be available for each other.
29 One thing I want to cite is that we made sure our supply chains both ways never fail, even in the depths of the crisis. We were still able to facilitate the safe movement of goods, services, and people. In fact, trade in goods and services increased in 2021. We collaborated closely with Malaysia to restore connectivity, launched VTLs for both land and air travel on 29 November 2021, and helped restore some, and I say some because it is a very small fraction of the pre-pandemic flow of tourists and business people. We have also helped reunite families on both sides of the Causeway. I know we all look forward to expanding cross-border travel progressively and safely, hopefully at some point back to pre-pandemic levels.
30 On ASEAN, let me just quickly say that Mr Henry Kwek asked about concerns in Myanmar. It is still a very dire situation. The ASEAN Leaders had a meeting in April 2021 and arrived at a Five-Point Consensus. Unfortunately, there has been no significant progress at all. We will continue to work with the ASEAN Chair Cambodia this year, as we did with Brunei last year, and indeed our fellow ASEAN Member States to continue trying to promote, persuade, cajole, and reach a peaceful and durable resolution of the situation in Myanmar through the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus.
31 Mr Chairman, since MFA’s establishment in 1965, our Mission has always been to uphold the independence and sovereignty of Singapore; to protect and advance the interests of Singaporeans, both at home and overseas. We must thus continue to invest in this effort of diplomacy, even as the Government tackles all the immediate challenges of the day. Just as supply chains are moving towards a “Just-in-Time” to “Just-in-Case”, for a small city-state like Singapore, we must always prepare for all possible scenarios. It is in our fundamental interest to ensure that our partners around the world have a stake in our continued peace and prosperity. We must never take our independence, sovereignty, peace and security for granted.
32 I thank Members of Parliament for your continued support of MFA’s work and for the wonderful, dedicated service of every single MFA officer.
33 Thank you.
