Singapore: Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Wednesday (October 27) that Singapore welcomes Australia’s assurance that its recent defense agreements with the United States and the United Kingdom will meet multiple standards, including the promotion of a “stable and secure” Asia-Pacific region. ).
At the first ASEAN-Australia summit, Mr. Lee talked about the trilateral agreement AUKUS between the three countries, and pointed out that ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and Australia have similar strategic regional prospects.
“Singapore welcomes support for the centrality of ASEAN, deepening economic integration, promoting a stable and secure Asia-Pacific region and a new regional structure based on a rule-based order, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,” Mr. Lee said in a virtual meeting.
“We welcome Australia’s assurance that its AUKUS partnerships with the United States and the United Kingdom will meet these standards.”
Mr. Lee pointed out that the relationship between ASEAN and Australia is “broad and multifaceted”, covering all three pillars of the ASEAN Community.
“We thank Australia for actively participating in ASEAN because Singapore agrees in principle to Australia’s proposal to upgrade its relationship with ASEAN to a comprehensive strategic partnership (CSP) and encourages our officials to continue discussions,” he said.
“We also welcome Australia’s announcement of its contribution to ASEAN through the Australia Promotion of ASEAN Futures Initiative.”
Relationship between ASEAN and Japan
At the 24th ASEAN-Japan Summit held earlier in the morning, Mr. Lee pointed out that ASEAN and Japan have made considerable progress since the establishment of dialogue relations in 1973.
“We have built a solid foundation of trust, mutual respect and friendship,” he explained.
“The two sides have carried out extensive cooperation in the fields of counter-terrorism, cyber security, maritime security, public health, climate change, infrastructure and smart cities.”
At the same time, it is necessary to continue to expand cooperation between ASEAN and Japan, Mr. Lee said.
“We welcome the second iteration of the ASEAN-Japan Climate Change Action Agenda, which will strengthen the region’s ability to respond to climate change, help ASEAN decarbonize and implement nature-based solutions,” he added.
“I thank Japan for the projects initiated so far, and look forward to cooperating on more practical projects in the future.”
