Singapore-US Cooperation under Biden Administration and Assessment of Relations under New Trump Administration

Mr Speaker, Mr Neil Parekh has asked a very topical question, which I have had to update just in the last few days. He has asked for an assessment of Singapore-United States (US) bilateral ties.

Singapore and the US enjoy a substantive, multifaceted and a very long-standing partnership. The fundamentals of this mutually beneficial relationship have been nurtured across both Democratic and Republican Administrations over the past 60 years. Bipartisan.

Singapore worked closely with the Administration of former President Joe Biden. During this time, our bilateral ties broadened, we institutionalised cooperation in areas including space, critical and emerging technologies and nuclear energy. For example, in 2023, we established the US-Singapore Critical and Emerging Technology Dialogue, which bolsters our collaboration in cutting-edge technology. In December 2024, the US-Singapore 123 Agreement entered into force and in January this year, we signed a Memorandum of Understanding Concerning Strategic Civil Nuclear Cooperation. Together, these agreements and partnerships will deepen civil nuclear cooperation, it will enable us to better understand how advanced nuclear energy technologies can potentially support our clean energy needs.

In 2024, we also commemorated the 20th anniversary of the US-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (USSFTA). This was the US’ first FTA with an Asian country and, in fact, remains its only FTA with an ASEAN country. The USSFTA contributed to the tripling of bilateral trade since 2004 and has allowed the US to consistently maintain a trade surplus with Singapore.

Today, the US is our top trading partner in services, our second largest trading partner in goods and our largest foreign investor. In fact, if you add up the stock of US foreign direct investment (FDI) into Singapore, the US has invested more in Singapore than it has invested cumulatively in China, India, Japan and Korea combined. Quite a shocking statistic. The US has invested more in Singapore than it has invested in India, China, Japan and Korea combined. That is why we have 6,000, in fact, more than 6,000 US firms based in Singapore, creating jobs and opportunities for Singaporeans.

Meanwhile, Singapore is the third largest Asian investor in the US and there are some 200 Singapore companies in 40 states. Together, our bilateral trade and investments between the US and Singapore generate over 350,000 jobs in the US.

We have also worked well with President Donald Trump during his first term. In October 2017, President Trump invited then-Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to visit the US. And of course, in June 2018, President Trump came to Singapore to attend the US-North Korea Summit. In 2019, then-Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and President Trump signed the Protocol of Amendment to the 1990 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Regarding the United States Use of Facilities in Singapore. This extended the MOU by a further 15 years and it underscores our strong bilateral defence relationship and Singapore’s support for the US strategic presence in our region. We look forward to working closely again with President Trump to further deepen bilateral ties in the years ahead.

The US presence in our part of the world has actually helped to provide security, stability and economic opportunities in the Asia Pacific for the past 80 years. The US is ASEAN’s second-largest trading partner and the largest source of FDI into ASEAN. It has also supported ASEAN economic initiatives, especially capacity building in areas like digital trade, trade facilitation and the development of micro, small and medium enterprises. The US has also cooperated closely with ASEAN on emerging issues like clean energy and cybersecurity.

But the world is now at a new inflection point, probably at a point which we have not faced for almost a century. The liberal world order that prevailed after the Second World War, which was characterised in three dimensions: one, domestically, usually democracy and human rights; two, economically, by global supply chains and economic integration; and three, at the international level by the development of international institutions, the United Nations, the Bretton Woods institutions, international law, international norms and rules. That liberal world order, which, in fact, has been quite conducive for Singapore’s progress in the last 60 years, is now being eroded and it is being eroded because it has lost domestic political support in many parts of the world. And I set that out so that we can also situate the changes which are happening within the US and the unfolding drama of its relations with its own treaty allies, with Europe, with China, with Southeast Asia. And therefore, how we need to respond to this profound challenge.

The US’ relationship with China is, in fact, the most consequential relationship in the world. How these two superpowers interact with one another has deep implications for global stability and prosperity. Right now, I would characterise it as a significant lack of strategic trust between these two superpowers. And we are all witnessing a bifurcation, a decoupling of the global economy as a result of that. But again, if you look at the headlines over the last few days, it is not just the US and China, but also its relationship within its own allies and neighbours in its own hemisphere, and its evolving relationship with the European Union (EU).

And the challenge, therefore, is how Singapore and Southeast Asia should respond. We believe there needs to be an omni-directional engagement on our part with all the multiple poles of power that are emerging. That means, engaging with the US, engaging with China, India, the EU, Africa and South America. And you would notice our intensive diplomacy and economic engagement across the world. The signing of FTAs like the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which is ASEAN with China, Japan, Korea, Australia and New Zealand. You would have noticed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), which initially was supposed to include the US. The US pulled out, the rest continued and the TPP has grown since then. You would also have noticed that we have now signed FTAs with the Pacific Alliance, which is Mexico, Colombia, Peru and Chile, and we also signed one with Mercosur, which is Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay.

It is worth noting that all these FTAs that Singapore has been able to sign have occurred despite the mood against globalisation. And in fact, if you look at the variety of governments in charge of these countries, they range across a very wide political spectrum. But the point is we can still continue to engage and make common calls as widely as possible in order to expand opportunities and to look for stability.

With the US, ASEAN and the US elevated relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2022 and we were able to adopt a Leaders’ level statement on cooperation on the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific as well as on artificial intelligence.

Specifically, with respect to Singapore, we will have to continue to play a constructive, inclusive role in a nimble way given our size. So, that means, we have to be consistent, reliable and a trustworthy host to enterprises from all over the world, including the US and China. We will uphold the rule of law and sanctity of contract. We will act decisively and firmly against individuals and companies that flout the rules. Or maybe, let me rephrase that more colloquially. It means playing it straight, it means saying the same thing to everyone and it means doing what we say. At a time of tension, instability and volatility, our Singapore branding and the way we speak and behave, in fact, becomes more valuable.

Mr Speaker, Sir, I have a supplementary question for the Minister. I would like to get his assessment on the likely impact on Singapore of the recent tariffs imposed on China, Mexico and Canada.

I know we are under time pressure so, obviously, I cannot give the Member a comprehensive answer to all that and, in any case, the news is still unfolding.

But just take a step back, I think tariffs and emerging tariffs are a reality going forward. I will take some risk and say that I do not anticipate us being on the hit list for direct tariffs because, as I said earlier in my answer, the US has a surplus in as far as the trade balance with us is concerned.

Having said that, even if you assume that there are no tariffs, no direct tariffs against the export of Singapore products and services, the fact that we are a small open economy and that trade constitutes more than three times our gross domestic product means if there is any friction, if there is any degradation of economic integration global supply chains and world trade, we will be impacted indirectly.

So, this is an area which we are watching very, very closely but I hope Members in this House will recognise that it still means we need to keep calm, we need to keep our eyes open. But we need to be very careful in what we say and how we behave and playing it straight, saying the same thing to everyone and meaning, and doing what we say, is valuable. But I do need to prepare Singaporeans that it will be a turbulent ride in the months or years to come.