PM Lawrence Wong at the Singapore-Thailand Leaders' Retreat Joint Press Conference with Thailand Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul (Sep 2026)

Your Excellency Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul
Distinguished Ministers of both the Thai and Singapore delegations,
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen.

I am very happy to be back in Bangkok. And thank you my friend and Prime Minister Anutin, for your warm and generous hospitality.

This is the first Singapore-Thailand Leaders’ Retreat for Prime Minister Anutin and me. It comes after a hiatus of more than a decade. And I am glad we have revived this important platform – to take stock of our relations, discuss issues of mutual interest, and chart the way forward together.

Prime Minister Anutin and I had very candid and productive discussions today. Our bilateral relations are in excellent shape. And it is underpinned by a high degree of trust and rapport at the leadership level as well as strong institutional ties between our two countries.

We have for example, established platforms like the Singapore–Thailand Enhanced Economic Relationship (STEER) and the Civil Service Exchange Programme (CSEP) that brings government, leaders and officials together.

Defence cooperation is a key pillar of our relationship. We deeply appreciate Thailand hosting the SAF (Singapore Armed Forces) for training over many decades. And we will continue to strengthen our defence cooperation and deepen the professional ties between our armed forces.

Our economic links are extensive and growing. Despite global economic uncertainties, bilateral trade continues to grow. Singapore has consistently been one of the top foreign investors in Thailand. We have every confidence in Thailand’s economy, and our companies continue to see good opportunities to invest and grow here for the long term.

At the same time, our partnership continues to evolve with the changing needs and priorities of our two countries.

So at our Retreat today, we reviewed progress and focused on how to turn these shared priorities into concrete projects.

Let me mention a few key areas.

First, food and energy security. These are increasingly important priorities for both our countries, especially in a more uncertain and volatile world. Last November, we concluded an agreement on rice trade. Today, we discussed how we can further strengthen our food supply chains by promoting collaboration between food producers and traders. This plays to the strengths of both countries – Thailand as a major food producer, and Singapore as a logistics and trading hub. We are also working more closely to strengthen energy resilience, including by advancing the ASEAN Power Grid and deepening our cooperation in carbon credits.

Second, emerging technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI). Both Singapore and Thailand are investing in AI, and we are both looking at how we can deploy AI more widely across our economies. There is scope for us to work together on practical applications – including in areas where both our countries have strengths, like manufacturing, healthcare and tourism. We can also share experiences on how to deploy AI safely and responsibly, while encouraging innovation and adoption.

Third, closer connectivity between our two countries. On physical connectivity, Thailand has ambitious plans to strengthen its position as a regional trade and logistics hub, including through upgrades to its infrastructure and improving connections between its transport networks and ports. Singapore can be a natural partner in these efforts. And our companies, including PSA, have capabilities and experience that can contribute to these plans. We will also strengthen our digital links. Singapore and Thailand pioneered the PromptPay–PayNow linkage back in 2021 – that was the world’s first linkage between two national real-time payment systems. Now we want to take the next step – to connect with more countries through a common multilateral framework. We will also identify new opportunities for our companies to collaborate in fintech and the wider digital economy. The connectivity that we are seeking between our two countries depends on the connections between our people. So we will also continue to promote closer people-to-people ties, including among our civil servants and researchers. And the MOU we just signed on Cooperation in Social Sector Development will also enable us to learn from one another’s experiences and find new solutions together.

Our discussions today also covered regional and international developments.

Singapore and Thailand are like-minded partners with a shared interest in a strong and united ASEAN. Singapore will chair ASEAN in 2027, followed by Thailand in 2028. This gives us a unique opportunity to work together across successive Chairmanships – especially on initiatives that require sustained effort. So Prime Minister Anutin and I therefore agreed that our teams should work closely together to develop a multi-year agenda that builds continuity and momentum from one Chairmanship to the next. By doing so, we can sustain the momentum on important initiatives, and make greater progress on issues that matter to our region.

To conclude, today’s Retreat has reaffirmed the strength of the Singapore-Thailand partnership. Our ties are broad and substantive, founded on trust, and full of potential.

Prime Minister Anutin, we have set out an ambitious agenda together. I am confident that, working together, we can deliver on it, and bring concrete benefits for our peoples.

So thank you once again Prime Minister for your friendship, for your trust and partnership. And I look forward to welcoming you to Singapore for our next Leaders’ Retreat.