27 Mar 2015
By Pichayada Promchertchoo, Correspondent, Channel NewsAsia
POSTED: 27 Mar 2015 09:15
UPDATED: 27 Mar 2015 23:11
Foreign leaders from across the world will fly into Singapore this weekend to attend the State Funeral of its founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.
SINGAPORE: Foreign leaders and diplomats from around the world will gather in Singapore on Sunday (Mar 29) to attend the State Funeral of Mr Lee Kuan Yew, the country’s founding father.
ASIAN LEADERS
King of Malaysia Abdul Halim and Indonesian President Joko Widodo will be joining other Asian leaders at the University Cultural Centre (UCC), where the Funeral Service for Singapore's first Prime Minister will be held from 2pm to 5.15pm.
Other Southeast Asian leaders who have indicated their commitment to attend include Myanmar President Thein Sein, Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.
Asian leaders such as China Vice-President Li Yuanchao, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, South Korean President Park Guen-Hye, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also be in attendance.
Former Hong Kong Chief Executive Tung Chee Hwa will represent the Chief Executive and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government at the State Funeral.
WORLD LEADERS
On Thursday, United States President Barack Obama announced a Presidential Delegation to participate in the State Funeral. Leading the delegation is former United States President Bill Clinton, and former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who was a close friend of Mr Lee, will also make the trip.
The British High Commission in Singapore announced on Friday that First Secretary of State William Hague will represent the United Kingdom at the State Funeral.
The First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Igor Shuvalov will also attend the State Funeral.
They will be joined by Governor General of Canada David Johnston, who will pay respects to Mr Lee on Saturday at the Parliament House, where the coffin is lying in state.
Sunday's public ceremony will be preceded by the State Funeral Procession from Parliament House to UCC, which will commence at 12.30pm and cover a distance of 15.4km.