Singapore committed to enhancing ties with China: Foreign Minister Balakrishnan

Singapore, Sep 9 (PTI) Singapore is committed to enhancing and deepening bilateral ties with China, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said on Monday.

Balakrishnan, who is on a two-day official trip to Beijing, made the remarks in a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.

“Prime Minister Lawrence Wong is committed – and I send you his greetings – to enhancing and deepening our relationship with China,” The Straits Times newspaper quoted Balakrishnan as saying.

In the meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, Balakrishnan said the upgrading of the bilateral relationship in 2023 reflected “the unique, the longstanding and the very close ties between our two countries”.

Singapore and China upgraded ties to an “all-round, high-quality, future-oriented partnership” in April 2023, when then Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.

Balakrishnan also noted that 2025 will mark the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Singapore and China.

Wang, who in his opening remarks earlier welcomed Balakrishnan as an “old friend”, said the “current international situation is volatile, and our region is also faced with some causes of instability”.

“So, China and Singapore, as two forces for stability, need to constantly strengthen our strategic coordination and communication,” the report quoted him as saying.

“We are willing to further strengthen the alignment of our respective development strategies with Singapore and truly implement our new positioning of the relationship as an all-round, high-quality, future-oriented partnership,” Wang said.