Transcript of Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan's Doorstop Interview in Ramallah on 18 March 2024

Minister: This is at least my third time back in Ramallah. I am always fascinated to come here and to meet many old friends. I think you would have noticed they welcome all of us from Singapore. They know that our views are not identical. They know that we support the welfare and the future of the Palestinian people. Our discussions proceeded along those lines.

First of all, they are very grateful for the outpouring of generosity and compassion from all Singaporeans, especially with respect to the plight of the Palestinian civilians in Gaza. The fact that we have been raising funds, providing support, I think that clearly registered in their minds and in their hearts. They all express gratitude for it. Second, I think you would also notice that they gave us very good access with the Prime Minister. We also met the Prime Minister-designate. The Foreign Minister also gave us very candid views, which I am sure all my colleagues, Members of Parliament, enjoyed getting deep insights, not just by reading reports but from hearing directly from them. The concern is the deterioration of both the humanitarian, political and security situation in this part of the world, and including expressing concern with whether this conflict, or this exacerbation that began on 7 October (2023) could even spill over and become a regional conflict, which will then have even worse, profound implications on this part of the world but even as far afield as Southeast Asia. We had a very good, candid, open exchange of views. I always appreciate the fact that they are so open and constructive with us. It is not something that you can take for granted.

Singapore has excellent relations across the entire Middle East. To be able to have good, constructive discussions requires mutual respect. It also requires a sufficient reservoir of trust and goodwill – that we want the best for them. They appreciate the fact that we have continued to advocate for a two-state solution. More specifically, in the case of the West Bank, Palestinian Territories and Ramallah, they know that not only are we making a political statement, but over many years, we have held this consistent position. We have also helped them, specifically with human talent development, capacity building and helping their civil servants. This was, again, a key priority which the Prime Minister-designate emphasised – that they want to have more opportunities to learn from our civil service. You cannot just cut and paste, but you can exchange ideas. Our civil servants also learn from them. There are some very bright, committed people in the civil service here, and in the business and entrepreneurial sectors as well.

We have the Enhanced Technical Assistance Package. To date, more than 700 Palestinian officials have benefitted from this package. They have asked that we continue and try to accelerate this and I told them, we will be happy to have even more Palestinian officials come and interact with Singapore and Singaporeans.

All in all, it has been a good visit– a chance to reconnect, a chance to express our sympathies, a chance to reflect Singaporeans’ compassion for the plight of Palestinian civilians, and also a chance to look forward, hopefully, to the day when there is peace and they can focus on the development which they so richly deserve. As a person who has been coming to Ramallah several times over the years, you can see it is challenging. But I can tell you, there are buildings, there is progress, and there is determination in this place.

Kok Yufeng (ST): Minister, can you share more about what else Singapore can do to deepen relations with the Palestine Authority (PA), beyond the technical assistance package?

Minister: The technical assistance package is not just about technical assistance. It is about relationship building. That is why after this, we are going to have a session with the Singapore Cooperation Programme alumni. These are people who have spent time with us. Yet, they come back here and they serve. It is a long-term investment in relationship building, in trust. As I said, we must not take for granted the fact that they trust us, they engage us openly, constructively, despite the fact that they know our national positions cannot be identical. I deeply appreciate the ability to have that kind of relationship - that respect in diversity. But I still hope and pray for peace and for development.

The Palestinians are very resourceful, intelligent, hardworking and courteous people. There is so much more that they can achieve and deserve to achieve. We must continue to maintain that long-term commitment to standing by them. It does not mean we have to agree on everything but that there is respect, there is a commitment to mutual support. As long as that comes through, we will see that this relationship will continue to deepen. We are now in the Singapore Representative Office. Hawazi (Daipi) has been designated as our Representative for seven years to the Palestinian Authority. We have a Director, a local lady who is here. She has a day job but I am very glad that she is willing to be identified and associated with Singapore. We have a full-time presence here in Ramallah and I am grateful for that.

ST: Any plans to add more support, for example, financially?

Minister: We will certainly look at that to match their needs. There is a lot that needs to be done. But the real challenge is political. Whether they make progress in a long-term peace agreement with Israel, the parameters for a two-state solution where the two people, the Palestinians and Israelis can live in peace, dignity and security, side by side, because there is no alternative. But this has been a long-standing problem. I do not know how long more it will take. But you have to hope, you have to try, you have to encourage, and we have to support. That has been our long-standing consistent decision.

Sherlyn Seah (CNA):  Can you share a bit about the insights you have gathered today from the Palestinian leaders. How will you bring that forward in your upcoming meetings with the Israelis?

Minister: They were very candid. What happened on 7 October (2023) was a calamity. It was a calamity to both the Israelis and to the Palestinians. There is no running away from the fact that this has been a very, very major setback, and this has had unbearable humanitarian consequences. After you go through a trauma like that, there will be long, open wounds in both societies. That is the first point. You cannot underestimate the impact of this. Next, the conflict and the military response continues. Everyone is hoping to hear the news that they have arrived at an agreement for at least a humanitarian truce and the release of hostages. That has not happened yet. When that will happen, I do not know. But everyone is waiting for that. The third point is that after this conflict, this war in Gaza settles down, there needs to be some imaginative and courageous thinking about the day after - what governance structures (will be in place), who will be in charge, responsibility, accountability, support from your people. Again, you can not underestimate the difficulty of this. This is not just external politics, but just domestic politics - who leads, who represents, who advocates, who persuades, who mobilises the Palestinian people. They have to work out the long-term rules of engagement with their immediate neighbor, Israel. Then, they have got to get on with economic development. So, it is a very, very onerous and full agenda and set of challenges that the Palestinian leaders deal with. But they are cognisant of that.

They also know Singapore is a friend, but we are far away and we are very small. I always remind everyone that Singapore is only two times the size of Gaza. In fact, our population density in Singapore is higher than Gaza. But they look at us, they look at our delegation, and those who have come to Singapore. What we have been able to achieve in achieving unity in diversity, collective purpose, focusing on peace, development and opportunities - these are attributes that they admire so that is why they want to work with us, despite the fact that we are very small and far away. It is a good and strong relationship.

Daniel Ho Sheng (Mothership): Minister, we are here but back home, many young Singaporeans are concerned. They are passionate about the crisis. How do you think they can best express themselves, make their voices heard and play a constructive role? 

Minister: First of all, I am glad that Singaporeans care. If young people did not care, that would be terrible for our future. I am glad they care. They should care. The world is a very imperfect place and there are many conflict zones with tremendous humanitarian disasters, not just here but all over the world. I think we need to convert that compassion, that care, or even that anger, on issues in positive directions. I am very glad that specifically, for the last five months, we have been able to convert and channel that passion and that care in a constructive and positive direction. If you look at the donations that have been raised, it has come from all walks of life. It has come from people of different races, languages or religion, we have lived up to our creed “regardless of race, language or religion”. In our own small way, we have been able to make a difference - it is noticed and appreciated down here. I would encourage Singaporeans to continue to look for constructive ways to express our concern and our compassion. I want to encourage Singaporeans to continue to do that. If they had the opportunity to come here and see how we are received and how we are regarded in all parts of the Middle East, they would realise that care, concern and compassion would be a good defining attribute of our national identity. Please keep it up.

ST: You mentioned you have been to Ramallah three times - the conflict that has happened now, has that changed the tenor of the conversations you have had with the Palestinian Authority?

Minister: Yes, because right now, this is a conflict situation. Although we talk about the day after, you are still in conflict day, so that sense of urgency, that sense of pain, that sense of anxiety is very real. The other point I would make is that the leaders of the Palestinian Authority as those in the West Bank, had to exercise enormous courage to keep people calm and not let anger spill over into violence and exacerbate the situation down here. I told them very honestly, that is real leadership. Because, in the early days, in the immediate aftermath, the voices of calm and moderation were a minority - you needed to be very courageous to take that stand. I think now after five, six months, I hope that call for moderation has been proven right. That does not mean accepting and being paralysed. They still need to engage in the political imagination and the hard work to make progress and to achieve the fuller ambitions of their people.

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