Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan met German Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock at the German Federal Foreign Office in Berlin on 4 April 2022. Following the meeting, the two Ministers held a Joint Press Conference.
The Ministers reaffirmed the strong and longstanding ties between Singapore and Germany. They explored ways to deepen bilateral relations in areas such as green, digital, and cybersecurity cooperation. Minister Balakrishnan highlighted that there are over 2,100 German companies in Singapore, involved in key sectors such as finance, research and development (R&D), and engineering. Singapore has also seen an increase in investments from German Mittelstand [1] champions to expand their local R&D teams.
Germany and Singapore have a shared and profound belief in multilateralism. We can build on frameworks like the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement and the recently concluded ASEAN-EU Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement to bring our countries and regions closer together. We have always worked together closely both at regional and international fora. In 2020, under Germany’s Presidency of the EU Council and Singapore’s Country Coordinatorship of the ASEAN-EU Dialogue Relations, we elevated the relations between the EU and ASEAN to a Strategic Partnership.
The Ministers also exchanged views on global and regional developments, particularly the situation in Ukraine. They discussed climate change and the opportunities from sustainable development and the energy transformation.
The transcript of Minister Balakrishnan’s remarks and Q&A at the Joint Press Conference are below.
Source: Embassy of the Republic of Singapore, Tokyo