PM Lawrence Wong's Media Doorstop Interview in Tokyo, Japan

Mediacorp Channel 8 News (Ch8 News): How has your first official visit to Japan been? And what is the significance of a Strategic Partnership to Singaporeans and Singapore businesses?

PM Lawrence Wong: This is in fact a long overdue visit, because since taking over in 2024, I have been making introductory visits to countries in the region, prioritising ASEAN, and then after that our key partners in the region, so I have covered pretty much all of them, except for Japan. But just as well, the timing works out because the visit is now happening at the time when we mark the 60th Anniversary of our diplomatic ties, and that is why we are upgrading using this opportunity, to mark the occasion and to upgrade the partnership to a strategic partnership, as we have done recently with Korea too.

The relationship we have with Japan is long-standing. It is mutually beneficial and the cooperation is wide ranging, and the elevation to a Strategic Partnership will enable us to do more together. Our two countries are strategically aligned. We both believe in free and open trade and believe very strongly in upholding a rules-based international order. And the cooperation we have is also going to be more and more in new technology areas where there are complementarities. In fact, the priority sectors and industries that Japan is pushing for are very similar to the ones that we have in Singapore – In terms of AI, quantum space, cyber security, so these are all new opportunities for cooperation which will benefit our two countries, including researchers in these fields.

On top of that, Japan has always been a key investor in Singapore. In fact, Singapore is the largest destination of Japanese investments in Asia. And through the decades, Japanese companies in Singapore have created many jobs for Singaporeans. There are now more than 5,000 Japanese companies in Singapore, creating jobs for more than a 100,000 Singaporeans. So with the Strategic Partnership we believe there will be again, more opportunities for Japanese firms to expand overseas and use Singapore as a base to facilitate their expansion to markets outside of Japan, and that will be beneficial to Singapore and Singaporeans.

CNA: Japan’s role in the region sometimes comes up alongside historical sensitivities with some of its neighbours. You have made reference to this as well in your op-ed. Was this something that came up in your talks? And how does Singapore view Japan’s role in contributing to stability and cooperation in the region?

PM Wong: We did touch on it in our discussions today. Our starting point, if you take a step back, Singapore's starting point, is that we want a peaceful, stable and secure region that is in our national interest. Of course, we cannot achieve that by ourselves, so we need to do this with partners, and that is why we have long advocated for an open and inclusive region with ASEAN at the centre – so ASEAN itself engages all the key partners, and Japan will be a very important partner for ASEAN, because Japan is a G7 economy. It has got significant economic and diplomatic clout, and it should play a key role in regional affairs. Historically, of course, Japan has been much more active on the economic front and in development assistance.

On security matters, it has traditionally taken a more low-key approach because of the war history, and the history is important, we cannot forget the history. The history matters to us too. We will never forget what happened – the dark, painful period during the Japanese occupation. And that is why every year, we continue to mark the day when the British surrendered to the Japanese in 1942 on Total Defence Day. So we remember the past. We do not forget it, and we learnt the hard lesson, which is – no one else will defend Singapore but us Singaporeans.

But at the same time, we do not allow ourselves to be trapped by history. Remembering the past does not mean we cannot move forward to forge a mutually beneficial relationship with Japan, as we have been doing over the decades. In fact, this position is not a new one either. It goes all the way back to 1967 when Mr Lee Kuan Yew opened the Civilian War Memorial. And he said when opening the war memorial, that this memorial is not to arouse old hatreds or to seek settlements for blood debts, or even to warn us of another Japanese invasion, because the world has changed, and Singapore's approach is to build a more secure nation with as many strong and reliable friends as possible, and Japan is one of these friends.

So we have been working with Japan. We have been supportive of more cooperation with Japan on security matters over the years. That has been happening. And Singapore is not the only country. Many ASEAN countries too feel the same way, and that is why security cooperation with Japan and ASEAN has been ongoing for some time, through the ASEAN Regional Forum, through the ADMM Plus, the Defence Ministers meeting, and through different arrangements and dialogues. And we think this will continue.

Of course, not all countries in the region feel the same way. Some have a different historical perspective, and they feel that some of these historical issues have not been resolved. Singapore's position is, we hope Japan can more clearly articulate its position on these issues and put to rest these outstanding historical issues. Doing so, we believe, will enable Japan to play a larger role in regional affairs and to be more active on regional security matters.

CNA Digital: Singapore did mention that it hopes Japan will find ways to resolve its outstanding wartime issues. Was this topic raised during discussions, and would Japan take steps in this direction?

PM Wong: Again, like I said, we talked broadly about security cooperation, including some of these issues related to the past and history, the perspectives of history, we believe our position is clear. It has been articulated, not just by me, but by previous Prime Ministers before. I believe Japan understands the position. And the building of trust and confidence is ongoing, and it will move at a different pace for different countries.

With ASEAN countries, as I mentioned just now, we already have many mechanisms and arrangements for cooperation, wide ranging ones, humanitarian development assistance, disaster relief, and increasingly more and more on security cooperation too.

With other countries in the region, particularly with Japan's neighbors, it will be more complicated. With Korea, for example, with this current administration, I believe Korea and Japan, despite differences of views about the past, they want to continue cooperation, and they want to have fruitful relationships in finding common ground to work together. As you can see recently, when the president of Korea visited Japan, and they had a very good visit. With China, the relationship will be more challenging, as you can see now with the tensions that have arisen. Singapore is a friend to both China and Japan, and we hope both sides will continue to maintain dialogue and eventually find ways to resolve their differences.

Ch8 News: PM, you mentioned about the tension between China and Japan. So how do you think China will respond to your visit to Japan at this point in time?

PM Wong: China knows about my visit, and it is not only because I am here now. I think even before this visit, the news that I am coming was already known. China continues to invite me for the Boao Forum next week, so I have accepted the invitation. I am going to Boao to deliver a keynote speech. So we will continue to be friends with both China and Japan.

We do not see this as a zero-sum affair. Having good relations with one does not come at the expense of another. We can be friends with both China and Japan and America, for that matter.  We want to maintain as many good friends as possible. As Mr Lee Kuan Yew said, we want to have as many strong and reliable friends as possible.

In today's world, it can be more complicated because of great power rivalry. There will be more scrutiny over what Singapore does. When I am in one country, the other country may take notice. This time it is Japan. Next week will be China. At some point when I am in America, the same thing will happen, but that is just the reality of the complicated geopolitical environment that we are in. But as far as a small country is concerned, it is helpful to have maximum strategic space for us to operate, and that means cultivating and maintaining good relations with as many powers as possible as we can.

The Straits Times (ST): PM, to add to that, maybe we can reference the Bloomberg Forum remarks from last year. There was quite a lot of online attention on these remarks, and I think there will probably be some surrounding this visit as well. Did that affect how you had to then approach the two different countries?

PM Wong: So the relations with Japan, this visit has been very productive. With China, we continue to have very good relations with them. Even after the Bloomberg event last year, DPM Gan Kim Yong had a very good visit for the JCBC. Coordinating Minister Shanmugam had a visit recently too, also very productive, and I look forward to visiting China next week. And after Boao itself, I will also have yet another opportunity to visit China for APEC, so the relations continue, and we will focus on, as I said, finding common ground to expand and strengthen our cooperation. 

Amongst countries, there will inevitably be differences of views, bound to be, even with friends, there are differences of views. But these differences do not have to hold us back in terms of our bilateral ties or cooperation or partnership. And our focus in Singapore has always been to find the common ground, to focus on the areas where we have good opportunities to work together and to advance this cooperation in a mutually beneficial manner.

Lianhe Zaobao (LHZB): Energy prices have been skyrocketing, so the pump prices now in Singapore is higher than back then when Ukraine war first started. Is the government considering any assistance for drivers, you know, as seen in other countries, and especially, there are calls to reduce petrol duty.

PM Wong: We are monitoring the situation closely, because it is dynamic. The US had initially said that this military operation will be over in a matter of weeks. We are now in the third week. We do not know when it will stop. But quite aside from the military operation, the key question is whether or not the Strait of Hormuz will continue to be blocked, and for how long.

Even if the military operation were to stop, but the Strait of Hormuz continues to be blocked for a longer stretch, I think there will be severe consequences for the entire global economy. A lot of focus has been on oil and gas, but it goes beyond that, because the supply of fertiliser, for example may be impacted, and then it will have downstream impact on food supply. Or take another, something else, like helium. I think 30% of helium, of the world's helium comes through the Strait of Hormuz, and helium is used in MRI machines, specialised equipment, in hospitals, it is used in semiconductor production. So it is used in many other areas, so there will be a lot of potential knock-on effects. So a prolonged blockage of the Strait will have significant implications for the global economy, and may tip the global economy into a tailspin, into a downturn or even a recession. So these are things that we worry about. We do not know if it will happen, but we are monitoring very closely.

In the meantime, the measures that we have already announced in this year's budget are being rolled out, and households and businesses will feel the effects of these measures very soon, because things like U-Save will come out, will be rolled out very soon, and some of the business assistance measures will be rolled out. So, we want to see these being implemented first, households and businesses will feel the effects of these immediate measures when they are rolled out, and then we will continue monitoring the situation, because as I said, it is very fluid, and we are looking at all the different possibilities and contingencies that can happen. But if the need arises, then we stand ready to roll out and implement additional measures beyond what have been announced in the budget, and we will have the resources to do so decisively and quickly.

LHZB: How will Singapore's collaboration with Japan support our longer-term energy security?

PM Wong: Japan is an energy importer like Singapore. They are also a heavy user of LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas), so they are also concerned about energy security like us. I think in some ways, we can share experiences and we can work together, because while we are both energy importers, Singapore is an oil and gas trading hub. So in fact, Japan does quite a bit of LNG procurement and trading out of Singapore, and a lot of the oil and gas supplies come through the Strait of Malacca, where Singapore is one of the littoral states. So it is one area where, not so much to strengthen security, because we are both, in a way, vulnerable, but we can provide mutual support for one another, because we are in very similar situation and circumstances as energy importers and heavy LNG users.

But beyond that, Japan also has considerable experience and expertise in low carbon energy, because they have been trying to diversify, and they have been looking at ammonia and hydrogen. So we have some projects with them in ammonia, and we are looking to see how we can do more together on these new areas of low carbon energy.

And then thirdly, Japan, as you would have seen from the news, is restarting its nuclear power plants. It has experience in nuclear, and as we look to study the feasibility of nuclear, civilian nuclear power in Singapore, it is also an area where we would like to learn from Japan's experience.

ST: PM, you have mentioned a lot of different areas that Singapore is looking to work with Japan. With the latest string of PMs here, how do you ensure this continuity in relationship and collaboration priorities? And what is your personal relationship with the new PM?

PM Wong: Well, the initiatives and the projects continue, even if there were to be changes, and that has been the case over the years. We have had changes in Prime Ministers, changes in administrations, but there is continuity in the Japanese system for the various initiatives I talked about, and I believe this will continue. I mean, regardless of who is in charge here in Japan, because it goes beyond just one or two individuals. There is strategic perspective. There is a clear understanding on the mutual benefits of engaging one another and having closer cooperation between our two countries. On the relationship with the present Prime Minister, well, I have just met her, although I did meet her briefly in the multilateral meetings before in ASEAN, in the sidelines of ASEAN and G20 but that was very brief, but we had a very good meeting today, and we were able to exchange notes candidly, not just about bilateral matters, but also about the situation in the Middle East, and also as she gets ready for her next engagement, because she is leaving tonight for meeting with the US President. So we were able to have very open and candid conversations.

CNA Digital: Apart from working with Singapore on regional priorities such as the ASEAN power grid, how else can Japan play a bigger role in Southeast Asia and Asia?

PM Wong: There are many, many possibilities. As I said just now, Japan is already very active on development assistance, capability building for ASEAN countries, and in some of these they work together with Singapore. So we partner with Japan to provide capability building for other countries in the region. Japan is a leader in investments for the region, not just Singapore, but in many other countries, creating jobs and new opportunities. And in finance, for example, in financing of infrastructure, in potentially financing renewable energy projects and the ASEAN Power Grid. So these are all various possibilities that we will continue to discuss with Japan and in Singapore's capacity as ASEAN-Japan coordinator, we are the designated coordinator for ASEAN Japan relations, and also as Chairman of ASEAN next year, we think there will be opportunities for us to add more substance to the relationship.

But again, I just want to be clear, our approach is not specific to any one country. I mean, I am in Japan, I talk about Japan, but do not go away with the impression that it is only about Japan –whether it is on security, whether it is on engagement or substantive cooperation. Our approach in Singapore is to have an open and inclusive regional architecture with ASEAN at the centre, while we in ASEAN engage with all the major powers. Japan is clearly one of them, but there will be others – whether it is China, Korea, America, India, Europe, we want all of these powers to be actively engaged and present in ASEAN, to have stakes in ASEAN, because we believe that makes for a stabler and more inclusive architecture that will maximise our chances for peace and shared prosperity.

LHZB: We have elevated the relationship with Japan. I do not think there is a mention of the FTA between the two countries. It was last updated in 2007, so are we going to revisit it? Why is it not in this round's discussion?

PM Wong: It is not currently updated, does not mean it will never be upgraded, but we have the FTA. On top of the FTA, we are also members of other trade arrangements, including the CPTPP and RCEP. So we already have existing arrangements to facilitate open trade with one another, and we are going beyond trade. We are, in this upgrade of the strategic partnership, looking at cooperation in new areas, as I mentioned just now, particularly on the technology front, where we hope to do more in areas like AI, quantum space. On top of that, we are looking at how we can strengthen our supply chain resilience.

So we already have a full agenda in terms of the economic cooperation between our two countries. At some point in time, if there is mutual interest and if there is value-add that we can achieve from specific areas of further upgrades in the FTA, certainly we will look at it together with Japan.

CNA: Probably the last question from all of us – turning to wider geopolitics with the situation in Iran – you touched on it shortly earlier, but wondering if beyond just the impact on prices and the economy, is there more at stake for Singaporeans? Be it stability, order in the world. And what will you say to Singaporeans who are concerned about the state of affairs in the world today?

PM Wong: There is certainly much more at stake. Of course, we have talked about the economy for now as a key focus, because that will be the most immediate impact of what is happening in the Middle East. But the broader implications are a world where international rules and laws continue to be weakened – that sort of thing sounds a bit more abstract. Some people may say, “What’s the big deal?”. It may not be top of mind when people talk about the war. Top of mind is, “How does it impact my day to day?”.

But in fact, the weakening of these rules, the weakening of global institutions of long standing norms, are a very significant source of concern – for small states especially, but actually for all countries, big and small, because it will simply mean we are moving more towards a world where countries will be more inclined to use force to get what they want. It is no longer about what is permissible or possible under international law. It is, “What can I get away with? What can I do?” And if more and more countries, if the strong, major countries start to act this way, others will just follow and more. And if this trend were to continue, then we will end up in a world where there will be more conflicts, where differences will be resolved, not in peaceful engagements, but with show of force, with coercive tactics, and it will be a more volatile, unpredictable and dangerous world.

So, we worry about this, and that is also why we work very hard to forge coalitions of like-minded countries who feel very strongly about upholding a rules-based order. And we are upgrading our partnerships, our relationships, we are finding new ways to work with these countries in different groupings – whether it is CPTPP or otherwise, or in the UN or in other forums, so that we can do whatever we can with these different coalitions to uphold, whatever is possible of this so-called rules-based order. Like I said, it sounds very abstract, but it is actually something very critical for stability and continued peace in the world.