Singapore's Lawrence Wong in China for first official visit as prime minister

SINGAPORE, June 22 — Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will make a five-day official visit to China from Sunday at the invitation of Premier Li Qiang, according to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
PMO said Wong's introductory visit will see both sides commemorate the 35th anniversary of the establishment of Singapore-China diplomatic relations and reaffirm mutual commitment to strengthen bilateral ties.
'It is also an opportunity for leaders on both sides to exchange views on bilateral issues as well as regional and international developments,' PMO said in a statement on Sunday.
In Beijing, Wong who is also Finance Minister, will meet President Xi Jinping, Premier Li, and Chairman of the National People's Congress Zhao Leji.
Wong will also travel to Tianjin to attend the World Economic Forum's (WEF) Annual Meeting of the New Champions (Summer Davos) and participate in a dialogue session with WEF President Børge Brende.
The prime minister's delegation includes Foreign Minister Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Sustainability and Environment Minister and Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations Grace Fu, Acting Minister for Transport and Senior Minister of State for Finance Jeffrey Siow, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and for Home Affairs Sim Ann, and Member of Parliament Dr Syed Harun Alhabsyi. — Bernama

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

The Star

23 minutes ago

• The Star

China's Victory Day rehearsal leaks show stealth jets, massive air formations

Videos circulating on Chinese social media that appear to show rehearsals for a major military parade are providing an early glimpse of the scale and symbolism expected when China marks the 80th anniversary of its Victory Day in September. On Wednesday, a clip posted to the Instagram-like platform RedNote – also known as Xiaohongshu – showed at least 45 People's Liberation Army helicopters flying in formation. The aircraft formed ceremonial patterns, including a heart, the numbers '8' and '0', and also flew in groups of three, with each carrying red flags representing the Communist Party, the nation and the PLA. This was taken by many as a clear reference to the coming anniversary on September 3. A similar aerial flag guard formation opened the Victory Day parade over Tiananmen Square a decade ago. It commemorated the 70th anniversary of China's victory in World War II, officially termed the 'Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War'. Also on Wednesday, more images– including high-definition photos purportedly showing China's J-35 stealth jets with the serial numbers 3501, 3505, and 3506 – emerged on the platforms Weibo and X. The fighters were pictured flying in formation with several J-15T carrier-based fighter jets, hinting at their potential inclusion in the coming parade, according to the social media user who posted the images. These sightings, some dating back to April, underscore the increasing public visibility of parade preparations and widespread anticipation surrounding the national event. The frequency of such rehearsal video posts intensified in May. They prominently featured military aircraft formations, including J-20 stealth fighters, H-6N bombers, KJ-600 early-warning aircraft, Y-20 tankers, and helicopters forming the number '8'. Videos and photos of tanks moving in formation and of marching drills have also surfaced online, suggesting intensive training is under way for the ground contingents – including military vehicles and equipment. They are expected to march along Beijing's Changan Avenue, as in the 2015 parade. The South China Morning Post first reported on preparations for the rare parade in February. President Xi Jinping officially confirmed this year's parade when he met his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko in Beijing on June 4. According to BelTa, the official news agency of Belarus, Xi invited Lukashenko to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit and a parade in Beijing between late August and early September. 'A SCO summit will take place in Tianjin at the end of August. A little later, on September 3, we will hold a parade to celebrate the victory of the global fight against fascism. I invite you to attend and will be glad to see you there,' Xi was quoted as saying by BelTA, marking the first time the Chinese leadership had publicly acknowledged plans for the parade. Other heads of state expected to attend the SCO summit in the city near Beijing include Russian President Vladimir Putin. He was likely to be present at the parade, diplomatic sources earlier told the Post. This parade will be only the second time that China has specifically commemorated victory over Japan with such an event. The 2015 event under Xi was the first high-profile military parade dedicated to Victory Day, rather than China's National Day on October 1. Traditionally, China's largest military displays were held on National Day every 10 years, making the September 3 event a relatively recent but significant addition to China's commemorative calendar. The exact scale of the 2025 parade remains undisclosed. The 2015 Victory Day parade featured 12,000 PLA troops, over 500 vehicles, nearly 200 aircraft, and more than 1,000 foreign troops from 17 countries. The coming parade could also serve as a platform for China to counter perceived US-led Western influence, reinforcing narratives on defending the post-World War II global order against 'hegemony' and 'unilateralism', themes Xi articulated in an article for Russian state media during his visit to Moscow for Russia's Victory Day parade last month. The 2015 event was a major showcase for the PLA's modernisation, with an estimated 84 per cent of the equipment newly introduced since the 2009 National Day parade. This included the public debut of the DF-21D anti-ship ballistic missile, a weapon system explicitly designed to function as a carrier killer and counter American naval power in the Western Pacific. There is heightened anticipation of potential new weapons being unveiled in this year's parade as well. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST

Malay Mail

3 hours ago

• Malay Mail

Singapore's Lawrence Wong in China for first official visit as prime minister

SINGAPORE, June 22 — Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will make a five-day official visit to China from Sunday at the invitation of Premier Li Qiang, according to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). PMO said Wong's introductory visit will see both sides commemorate the 35th anniversary of the establishment of Singapore-China diplomatic relations and reaffirm mutual commitment to strengthen bilateral ties. 'It is also an opportunity for leaders on both sides to exchange views on bilateral issues as well as regional and international developments,' PMO said in a statement on Sunday. In Beijing, Wong who is also Finance Minister, will meet President Xi Jinping, Premier Li, and Chairman of the National People's Congress Zhao Leji. Wong will also travel to Tianjin to attend the World Economic Forum's (WEF) Annual Meeting of the New Champions (Summer Davos) and participate in a dialogue session with WEF President Børge Brende. The prime minister's delegation includes Foreign Minister Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Sustainability and Environment Minister and Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations Grace Fu, Acting Minister for Transport and Senior Minister of State for Finance Jeffrey Siow, Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and for Home Affairs Sim Ann, and Member of Parliament Dr Syed Harun Alhabsyi. — Bernama

The Sun

5 hours ago

• The Sun

Malaysia proposes expansion of OIC-TPS

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has proposed expanding the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Trade Preferential System and the reduction of trade barriers to strengthen economic ties among its member states. The proposal was presented by Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan during Malaysia's national statement at the 51st Session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers Meeting in Istanbul, Turkiye, on Saturday. Mohamad said OIC, as the second-largest intergovernmental organisation in the world, holds vast potential for strategic partnership. He cited the inaugural ASEAN-Gulf Cooperation Council-China Summit led by Malaysia in May, which witnessed a new historic economic partnership being forged, as a milestone in regional cooperation. 'Malaysia believes that this can support developing States to circumvent the impacts of the US-China trade war,' he said. Held under the themed 'The OIC In A Transforming World', the meeting was attended by more than 40 foreign ministers from OIC's 57 member states. The meeting also saw high-level participation from nearly 30 international organisations including UN, Arab League, Developing Eight (D-8), International Organisation for Migration and World Trade Organisation, reflecting the urgency of the current regional situation.