President Lee Jae Myung and First Lady Kim Hae Kyung share a toast with Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and his wife, along with other attendees, during an official luncheon at the presidential office in Yongsan on November 2. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Nov. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea and Singapore agreed Saturday to elevate their bilateral ties to a strategic partnership, pledging closer cooperation across security, technology, and economic sectors as both nations navigate rising geopolitical uncertainty.
President Lee Jae Myung and Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced the upgrade following a summit at the presidential office in Seoul, where they signed multiple memorandums of understanding on defense, digital innovation, and cultural exchange.
“The interna…
President Lee Jae Myung and First Lady Kim Hae Kyung share a toast with Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and his wife, along with other attendees, during an official luncheon at the presidential office in Yongsan on November 2. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Nov. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea and Singapore agreed Saturday to elevate their bilateral ties to a strategic partnership, pledging closer cooperation across security, technology, and economic sectors as both nations navigate rising geopolitical uncertainty.
President Lee Jae Myung and Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced the upgrade following a summit at the presidential office in Seoul, where they signed multiple memorandums of understanding on defense, digital innovation, and cultural exchange.
“The international order that has supported global growth and prosperity is now being shaken,” Lee said at a joint press conference. “Amid challenges such as climate change and transnational crime, our two countries agree that strategic cooperation is more essential than ever.”
Under the new framework, Seoul and Singapore will expand joint defense research, enhance coordination on cyber and financial crimes—including online scams—and deepen collaboration in cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence.
“We will strengthen cooperation in digital security, public health, and advanced technologies to improve public services,” Wong said, adding that Singapore also welcomes Korean participation in its defense diversification efforts.
The two leaders agreed to boost trade and investment through revisions to existing free trade agreements and to pursue a bilateral nuclear energy cooperation pact. In a symbolic breakthrough, they also reached an agreement to allow exports of Jeju Island beef and pork to Singapore—an achievement Lee called “a milestone for Korea’s agricultural exports to global markets.”
Additional accords signed during the summit included a Digital Cooperation MOU to promote joint AI research and cross-border innovation, a Green and Digital Shipping Corridor MOU to modernize maritime logistics, and agreements on civil service training and cultural exchanges.
Lee urged Singapore—Asia’s financial hub—to expand investment in Korean startups and the country’s creative industries, calling for “shared growth in innovation-driven sectors.”
Both sides also discussed regional stability and peace, with Wong expressing full support for Seoul’s vision of “a new era of peaceful coexistence and shared prosperity on the Korean Peninsula.”
At an official luncheon, Lee lauded Singapore as “a small but radiant star that has achieved remarkable growth despite limited resources and challenging geography.” Wong replied that in these “dark and uncertain times,” Singapore and Korea “are two rising stars in Asia,” bound by shared resilience and friendship.
The summit marked the second bilateral visit by an ASEAN leader under Lee’s administration, following the Vietnamese Communist Party chief’s state visit in August—part of Seoul’s broader strategy to deepen ties with Southeast Asia.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)