China and Singapore to resume military exercises, cooperate on defence education

Analysts say the developments are a ‘natural progression’ of warming defence ties between China and the city state, which also has strong strategic ties with the US

A question that will be raised is ‘the level of exposure both sides would have to each other’s doctrine and equipment’, one observer says

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Singapore Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen and his China counterpart Wei Fenghe pictured in Singapore on May 29, 2019. File photo: AFP

Published: 6:38pm, 9 Jun 2022Updated: 9:00am, 10 Jun 2022

China and Singapore’s defence ministers on Thursday said joint military exercises suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic were set to resume, and pledged to deepen defence ties in their first face-to-face meeting since 2019.

Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe and his Singaporean counterpart Ng Eng Hen held talks at the inaugural Singapore-China Defence Ministers’ Dialogue, where they discussed global security issues, a statement from the city’s defence ministry said.

The two defence ministers also shared their respective views on bolstering defence exchanges between China and Asean, the statement said.

Singapore, which has deep strategic ties with the United States, has maintained strong defence ties with China, insisting that regional countries should not be pressured into taking sides in the superpower rivalry.

Ng, a veteran of Singapore’s ruling People’s Action Party (PAP), greeted Wei with an embrace at the city state’s Ministry of Defence headquarters. The two ministers last met three years ago, when Ng visited Beijing.