Transcript of Remarks by Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan at the Joint Press Conference in Islamabad, Pakistan, 30 October 2026

Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan: Thank you, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Pakistan, Senator Ishaq Dar, my good friend and brother. Thank you for this opportunity to be in Pakistan. For those of you who don’t know, I come from a very tiny island city-state in the heart of Southeast Asia, and we’re here in the midst of great beauty. We were discussing the incredible panorama, from the (Arabian) sea to (Mt) K2, that Pakistan offers the world. So thank you again for this opportunity.

This is a significant year for Singapore and Pakistan. We have never forgotten that Pakistan was one of the earliest countries to recognise Singapore’s independence, and that’s why we are commemorating the 60^th anniversary of diplomatic ties.

Over the years, there has been high-level exchanges at the leadership level, sometimes all over the world; not often enough in our own home countries. I was checking the records. My former Prime Minister Mr Goh Chok Tong was here in 2004. So this is belated, but better late than never. But more important than that, we’ve had opportunities for a substantive and productive exchange of views. I have to let you know that we’re in constant communication far more than people realise, and there are many things that we do which we don’t necessarily publicise. Don’t ask me about that; just take it as an article of faith that we have a very effective partnership. [To Senator Dar] I’m sure you agree with me.

We’ve had good discussion just now, and the fact that your Prime Minister has accepted our invitation to visit injects an additional sense of urgency to deliver on his priorities. Let me just highlight a few of the areas where we’re working furiously on to get the homework done. First, trade and economic cooperation. To be very candid, at a diplomatic level, we’ve got excellent ties. In fact, they are so good that it makes it even more obvious that our trade relations – looking at the numbers and the data – ought to be much higher. That I would say is the first order of business. We need to facilitate greater trade and investment flows. We need to strengthen the links. This was something your Prime Minister reminded me about. Especially between SMEs, between businessmen, they need to meet, they need to know each other, they need to understand the business opportunities and the risks on both sides in Southeast Asia as well as South Asia, and we need on the part of governments, to facilitate these interactions and to identify new opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation. In an increasingly uncertain global environment, including on the business side of it, it is even all the more important for our two countries to remain open, connected, and constructively engaged with each other.

We also discussed carbon markets, which we think is another fertile opportunity for Singapore and Pakistan to work together. It will be another promising avenue to attract investments into projects in Pakistan that reduce emissions while supporting sustainable development. Our officials are exploring opportunities in this area.

The second area of cooperation: we just exchanged the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Singapore Civil Defence Force and Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority. This reflects our shared commitment to strengthen disaster preparedness and response. Disasters are not something you wish for, but it is something which we have to prepare for and to be acutely aware that at the rate things are going, and with the progression of climate change, this is a current and clear threat, and the more we can work together and prepare together, the more resilient we will be. Pakistan, unfortunately, has extensive experience in responding to large-scale natural disasters, including floods and other extreme weather events, and so there is much that Singapore can learn from Pakistan in how to cope and how to be more resilient for the future. Through this MOU, we hope to explore cooperation in areas including early warning systems, the sharing of best practices, strengthening search and rescue capabilities, as well as hopefully, conducting joint training and exercises. It’s worth remembering that disasters do not respect boundaries, do not have passports, and the more we can work together, the better.

The third area, and again, this was another area that your Prime Minister also emphasised, was people-to-people ties. We welcome the opportunities to deepen cooperation between our institutes of higher learning, which includes the Nanyang Technological University and the National University of Singapore, with Pakistan’s National University of Sciences and Technology. I want to emphasise: this is just the beginning. We hope to expand that list in due time.

On regional and international developments, first I want to congratulate Senator Ishaq Dar for the incredibly valuable role that Pakistan is playing. For instance, we know there’s the current crisis in the Gulf, and in fact, most of the energy that comes through the Gulf is actually headed to the East: South Asia, Southeast Asia, and to Northeast Asia. The unique, but very constructive and valuable role that Pakistan plays is one which we commend you for, and we wish you every success because if you succeed, it’s good for all of us. So that’s the first point of commendation and appreciation.

The next point is to emphasise the point that you just made. For both Pakistan and Singapore, international law is critical.  In the case of Singapore, because we are an island city-state, and our trade volume is three times our GDP, the maritime arena is essential, and therefore, UNCLOS, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982, which sets out the right of transit passage in Straits Used for International Navigation, as a right and not by the grace of littoral powers, this is of acute importance to us, and we are very very heartened that Pakistan stands, in fact in exactly the same position, on this critical issue with us.

The other point, which we have also reminded each other, is that as Singapore takes on the chairmanship of ASEAN next year, and with Pakistan already, I believe, the chair of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Council of Heads of State, this will present another set of opportunities for these two regional blocs - two dynamic, diverse regional blocs – to look for opportunities to do more together. We also remember that Pakistan is already a sectoral dialogue partner [of ASEAN] – and in fact, as you’ve mentioned, one of the earliest sectoral dialogue partners of ASEAN – and we’re going to look for opportunities for Pakistan to do more with ASEAN. I think the horizon is very broad on that front. So, I will work closely with you in strengthening the ties between Pakistan and ASEAN, and also between the two regional blocs.

I’ve already mentioned our discussions on the international situation, the superpowers, and the Gulf. I just want to again emphasise our appreciation for all that you have done.

We have also discussed the opportunities in education, particularly with a focus on opportunities for young people. We are living in an age of a new industrial revolution, AI, and the digital technologies, and it is essential to ensure that our young people have the relevant skills, not for yesterday’s jobs, but for tomorrow’s jobs. And so, this emphasis on skills and relevant qualifications, and capability, and human talent development is another very important area for cooperation between Pakistan and Singapore.

Let me just close again by thanking you, Senator Dar, for your friendship, for your hospitality, and for the work that we have in front of us. 60 years is an important milestone, but what matters more is what we do in the next 60 years. I look forward to building on the discussions today and finding more practical ways to advance the development of our very close relations between Singapore and Pakistan. Thank you all very much.

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

SINGAPORE

30 OCTOBER 2026