Singapore gets fighter jet unit on Guam as US, facing China threat, lauds closer ties with allies
- New pact comes after renewal of agreement allowing US forces to use the city state’s naval and airbases
- Washington has positioned Singapore’s access to Guam as a move to reassure allies in the face of growing military competition with China in the Indo-Pacific
Singapore has “always been a close friend” of the US, said Faizal Abdul Rahman, a research fellow at Singapore’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, citing its contribution to US-led operations in Afghanistan and the global coalition against the Islamic State (Isis) militant group.
“This is just a continuation of that strategic and operational partnership,” he said, adding that it also made “logical sense” that Guam was chosen, since Singapore purchases and uses American military technology.
Singapore’s defence minister Ng Eng Hen and his American counterpart Mark Esper had on December 7 inked an agreement allowing the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) to deploy assets such as its F-15SG and F-16 fighter aircraft to the Andersen Air Force Base.
The pact followed closely on the heels of a 1990 agreement between the US and Singapore, which grants American forces access to the city state’s naval and airbases.
“The vast training airspace in Guam will allow the RSAF to conduct realistic training, to hone their capabilities and readiness,” said Singapore’s defence ministry in a statement.
