Joint Press Statement: The State Visit of His Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Singapore, 16-17 October 2017

His Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar, made a State Visit to the Republic of Singapore and received an official welcome at the Istana today. He met Madam Halimah Yacob, President of the Republic of Singapore, and they reaffirmed the excellent ties between Qatar and Singapore.

His Highness Sheikh Tamim also met with Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. They discussed Qatar-Singapore bilateral relations and a range of regional and international issues. A signing ceremony was held at the Istana where three agreements and four Memoranda of Understanding in various areas of cooperation were signed.

Both leaders also reviewed the Qatar-Singapore High Level Joint Committee (HLJC), which is co-chaired by His Excellency Sheikh Abdullah Bin Nasser Bin Khalifa Al Thani, Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, and Teo Chee Hean, Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security. Both leaders reaffirmed the HLJC as the key pillar of bilateral cooperation between the two countries. Since its establishment in 2006, the Committee has served to promote and deepen bilateral relations in many fields, with 28 Memoranda of Understanding and agreements concluded.

His Highness and Prime Minister Lee both stressed the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation and agreed to incorporate the Implementation Monitoring Mechanism (IMM) under the HLJC framework to ensure regular follow-up and optimal implementation of initiatives. Five Technical Committees in the sectors of Information Communication Technology, Security, Business, Legal, and Sustainability will be established and overseen by IMM co-chairs His Excellency Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Bin Jassim Al Thani, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Foreign Affairs. The IMM will establish a channel for Qatari and Singaporean ministries and agencies to work more closely and effectively together. Both sides agreed to hold the first IMM meeting in Doha in 2018.

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GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE

GOVERNMENT OF THE STATE OF QATAR

17 OCTOBER 2017