Lawrence Wong News

Singapore will start construction of a new mega terminal at Changi Airport in the first half of next year, aiming to lift the aviation hub's annual passenger handling capacity by more than half, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said. The new Terminal 5 would add capacity for another 50 million passengers a year when operational in the mid-2030s, up from 90 million, and would allow the aviation hub serve more than 200 destinations, from almost 150 now. «We will break ground for the construction of T5 in the first half of next year,» Wong said at a dinner on Friday celebrating the 40th anniversary of the nation's civil aviation authority.

Malaysia and Singapore leaders have signed an agreement to create a special economic zone to attract global investment and ease the cross-border flow of goods and people

India and Singapore has set the stage for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the city-state that will happen soon, its Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan has said. Senior ministers from the two countries held a «productive» round of discussions at the second multi-ministerial roundtable here and explored how the two countries can boost bilateral cooperation in digital, skill development, sustainability, healthcare, connectivity and advanced manufacturing. This was the second time that ministers from Singapore and India met at the India-Singapore Ministerial Roundtable (ISMR) after its inaugural edition was launched in September 2022 by then Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong during a five-day visit to India. Balakrishnan said advanced manufacturing and semiconductors, as well as aviation and maritime connectivity, are the new areas that Singapore and India have added to a high-level platform for discussing ways to enhance bilateral cooperation.

BIMSTEC Summit scheduled in Bangkok on September 4 owing to “technical issues” over formation of the cabinet. The decision to postpone the Summit was taken on Thursday as all preparations were ongoing till Wednesday. PM Narendra Modi in the light of the current circumstances will not travel to Bangkok. He was also scheduled to undertake a bilateral visit to Thailand on September 3. Modi is, however, expected to go ahead with the bilateral visit to Singapore on September 5, it has been learnt. Earlier he had plans to fly to Singapore from Bangkok. Ahead of Singapore visit, Ministerial delegations of the two countries will meet to firm up agenda to boost strategic partnership and the visit.

Economist Lawrence Wong was sworn in as the fourth prime minister of Singapore on Wednesday. He was administered the oath of office by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam.

SICCI is to help Singapore businesses and fellow trade associations and chambers of commerce deepen their ties with India, ever since the ‘India fever’ caught on during the tenure of then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong," Parekh elaborated. Under SICCI’s guidance, there have been numerous business missions to various Indian states, building strong relationships with major Indian business associations such as the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

India will continue to flourish under the leadership of the country's incoming Prime Minister Lawrence Wong who will be sworn in on May 15, the Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI) has said. «As Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong prepares to hand over (leadership of the city-state) to his successor, Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, we are confident that Singapore-India ties will continue to flourish,» said SICCI Chairman Neil Parekh on Saturday night at the centenary celebrations of the chambers. «This is all the more so since DPM Lawrence Wong co-chaired the India-Singapore Ministerial Roundtable, which has set the stage and the tone for long-term ties between our two countries,» he said at the SICCI centennial celebration gala dinner. Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam was the guest of honour at the dinner attended by some 700 business and community leaders from the prosperous Asian financial centre.

China, India and religious affinities, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Wednesday as he appealed for cohesion in his last major speech before stepping down from the leadership of the prosperous city-state in two weeks. «Social cohesion is important and race, language, and religion are traditional fault lines that will never go away for Singapore. While huge efforts have been made to build a shared Singaporean identity, the nation will always be subject to external forces that pull different segments of its population in different directions,» Lee said as he delivered the keynote address at the May Day Rally. «We cannot disavow our diverse ethnic roots and religious affinities — Chinese Singaporeans with China, Indian Singaporeans with their various ancestral homes in India, Malay Singaporeans with the rest of our region, and with the global Muslim Ummah,» Lee said impressing on the citizens of prosperous island state nestled in the heart of Southeast Asia.

Singapore’s incoming leader says Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will stay on as senior minister in the government after he steps down next month

By Xinghui Kok and Joe Brock

By Xinghui Kok and Joe Brock

Lee Hsien Loong, the prime minister of Singapore, has warned his social media followers regarding the use of deepfake videos that use his voice and image to promote cryptocurrency scams. 

(Corrects grammar in paragraph two, to 'had' from 'has')

On December 4, the Singapore government revealed its ambitious National AI Strategy 2.0, an evolution of its first AI strategy introduced in 2019. This updated strategy delineates a comprehensive roadmap for the next 3-5 years, aiming to position Singapore at the forefront of AI innovation and application.

Singapore’s regulatory body the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)  plans to begin piloting the digital currency “E-CNY” – also known as the digital yuan, in collaboration with China to encourage tourism spending.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong says he plans to bow out and hand over power to his deputy Lawrence Wong next year before the 2025 general election

NEW DELHI : Singapore is in talks with India to build industrial training and skilling institutes in India, according to persons aware of the matter. Skill development was made a key pillar of the strategic partnership between the two countries during education minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s visit to Singapore in May.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — Singapore's deputy prime minister said on Friday he hopes for substantial progress in the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) discussions in time for next month's Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.

free trade, but are at a disadvantage in a new era of aggressive industrial policy. Industrialized nations such as the U.K. and Singapore lack the scale to compete against the biggest economic blocs in offering subsidies.

Singapore’s declining birth rate and its aging population require a sustained yet well calibrated influx of migrant workers, according to Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. “If we are not able to bring in immigrants to top up the population then we are in structural decline, and eventually the population will decline, the workforce will decline and Singapore will decline,” Wong said at the Reinventing Destiny conference in Singapore on Monday. At the same time, Wong said Singapore is controlling the number of immigrants who will be allowed to work and that the number isn’t limitless nor excessive. “At the end of the day, the numbers are constrained by how much we are able to integrate the new arrivals” and how the migrants “embrace our values and way of life.” As a small, open economy, Singapore relies on foreign workers to help meet its labor needs. Yet immigration rules have tightened in recent years as the government needs to strike a balance between protecting local jobs as well as ensuring that it has enough resources to meet the demands of an increasing migrant population amid slowing economic growth. “We will not have the ability to integrate all of them into our society,” he said. “A small proportion will come in as permanent residents and it’s gated, it’s regulated. And we want to make sure that those who come in as permanent residents and eventually citizens are the ones who have the best chance to integrate into our society.”

Sikhs in Singapore have distinguished themselves in their chosen professions and made significant contributions in diverse fields while retaining their culture, faith and unique identity, Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said. He was addressing the 75th anniversary celebration dinner of the Sikh Advisory Board (SAB) on Sunday. «You have all distinguished yourselves in your chosen professions and made significant contributions in diverse fields… Crucially, Sikhs have done all this in Singapore while retaining their culture, faith and unique identity,» he told the gathering.