SINGAPORE - Singapore will continue to highlight the “mutually beneficial nature of Asean interactions and engagement with the United States” so that the region continues to prosper, said Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan.
Dr Balakrishnan told Parliament on March 6 that the US’ presence in South-east Asia has underpinned peace, stability and prosperity in the region for many decades.
“The United States remains a critical partner for Singapore and for Asean,” he said, noting how it is the largest foreign investor in South-east Asia by a significant margin, as well as the region’s second largest trading partner. Asean says on its website that according to preliminary statistics, trade between the US and the block amounted to US$294.6 billion (S$392.3 billion) in 2019.
Dr Balakrishnan held up Asean’s growing economic significance, highlighting that the region is on track to become the world’s fourth-largest economy by 2030.
The nominal gross domestic product of the 10 Asean nations is estimated at around US$3.6 trillion. This is expected to hit US$4.5 trillion by 2030, thanks to surging domestic consumption, export-driven manufacturing and a young workforce.
While US trade and investment in Asean supports “hundreds and thousands” of jobs, Dr Balakrishnan pointed out that South-east Asia, in turn, supports over 600,000 jobs in the US.
“We will keep emphasising the mutually beneficial nature of Asean’s interactions and engagement with the United States,” he said.
“This engagement will continue to contribute to the mutual benefit of both Asean and the United States, and create an area in this part of the world which is safer, stronger, and more prosperous.”
Dr Balakrishnan was responding to a question from Nominated MP Neil Parekh, who had asked about the relationship between the US and Singapore as well as Asean, and what Singapore’s priorities were for the bloc in its relations with the US under President Donald Trump’s administration.
Asean’s rapidly developing economies present significant opportunities for American companies, said the minister, adding that these include areas like critical minerals, energy, manufacturing and technology, including artificial intelligence.
He also highlighted the region’s strategic importance, noting that a third of global trade flows through key shipping lanes such as the Straits of Malacca and the Straits of Singapore, as well as into the South China Sea.
“The United States’ presence in our region, both economically and therefore also in having interests to protect from a defence perspective, has been crucial to maintaining stability and opportunities in our part of the world,” he said.
Mr Parekh also asked whether Singapore and Asean could play a role in peace negotiations for the war in Ukraine. No, it could not, said Dr Balakrishnan, noting that there are far more “proximate partners” and stakeholders directly involved in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia compared with South-east Asia.
Dr Balakrishnan also reiterated that the 10 Asean member states have consistently underscored their commitment to the United Nations charter, which upholds the principles of maintaining international peace and respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states.
He said that Asean countries have emphasised these core principles, including sovereign equality, political independence, and territorial integrity, in their voting records and statements at the UN.
“Asean, perhaps also because of our past experience in the Cold War, has absolutely no intention of allowing ourselves to be a future arena for proxy wars and we will certainly have no intention to allow ourselves to be caught in the strategic contestations between superpowers in the future,” he said.
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