Russia–Singapore relations

Russia–Singapore relations (Russian: Российско-сингапурские отношения) are the bilateral foreign relations between the two countries, Russia and Singapore. Russia has an embassy in Singapore. Singapore has an embassy in Moscow. Both countries are full members of APEC. Relations between the 2 countries have been friendly since bilateral ties were established. Due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, relations became very tense after Singapore imposed sanctions against Russia. Russia placed Singapore on a list of "unfriendly countries" along with Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, the United States, European Union members, NATO members (except Turkey), Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, Micronesia and Ukraine.

Russia–Singapore relations
Map indicating locations of Russia and Singapore

Russia
Singapore
Russian embassy in Singapore

History

Russia appointed their first consul to Singapore, A.M. Vyvodtsev, in 1890, when the island was still a part of the British Empire as the Straits Settlements. Nicholas II of Russia visited the following year during his round-the-world voyage.[1]

Singapore and the Soviet Union established full diplomatic relations on 1 June 1968.[2]

Visa is still required for citizens of Singapore planning to visit Russia, Russian citizens can apply for e-visa if planning to visit Singapore.

Bilateral relations

The accumulated positive potential in Russia–Singapore relations has made it possible to further expand and intensify them in the course of the last few years.

In 2009, a Russian-Singapore political dialogue was conducted which gained intensity. Among the attendees were Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Chairman of the Federation Council, Sergey Mironov, among other Russian delegates, and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew, Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong and Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, among other Singaporean delegates.[3]

The first state visit by a Russian head of state to Singapore was in 2009, where Russian president Dmitry Medvedev visited Singapore on 15–16 November. President Dmitry met with President S. R. Nathan, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his cabinet. The Russian-Singapore Joint Statement on the State Visit of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to Singapore determines the further steps to be taken to further enhance bilateral ties. One of the major results of the state visit of the Russian leader to Singapore was the establishment of the High-Level Russia-Singapore Inter-governmental Commission. The first and second sessions of the commission took place in Singapore, September 2010, and in Moscow, September 2011, respectively. Presently, the commission is co-chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister, Chief of Staff of the Government of the Russian Federation Vyacheslav Volodin and Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Finance and Minister for Manpower of Singapore Tharman Shanmugaratnam.[3] As Russian Prime Minister, Dmitry Medvedev most recently met Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong again in November 2015 that noted increased trade between the two countries, and expanding economic activities by companies[4]

Interparliamentary and interregional relations have also progressed for the last years. The ASEAN-Russian summit is held annually where leaders of member states meet with the Russian President.

Trade and economy is the locomotive of bilateral cooperation. Besides bilateral trade which has exceeded more than 17 billion US dollars, investment, scientific and technological cooperation has received an additional impulse. An agreement between the Government of Singapore and the Government of Russia for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income is applied to income derived on or after 1 January 2010. The Agreement on the Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investments was signed on 27 September 2010.

The sixth annual Russia-Singapore Business Forum was held in Singapore in September 2011. The representatives of public and private sectors of Russia, Singapore, the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Asia-Pacific Region participated in the forum.

Russia and Singapore celebrated 50 years of diplomatic relations in 2018.[5][6] Russian President Putin met with his counterpart President Halimah and was hosted to a state dinner. He also attended the ASEAN-Russia summit and the unveiling of the foundation stone of the Russian Cultural Center and a Russian orthodox church.[7]

Diplomatic incidents

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine

In the wake of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Singapore "strongly condemns any unprovoked invasion of a sovereign country under any pretext," and that "the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine must be respected." "All parties concerned should continue to pursue dialogue, including diplomatic means, towards a peaceful settlement of the dispute, in accordance with international law, and avoid action that will further raise tensions in the region," the statement added.[8] Local news outlets reported that Singapore may join international sanctions on Russia, and was unlikely to take a direct economic hit from export curbs on Russia.[9]

On 28 February 2022, Singapore announced sanctions against Russia by imposing export controls on items "that can be used directly as weapons in Ukraine to inflict harm or to subjugate the Ukrainians" and moved to "block certain Russian banks and financial transactions connected to Russia". The move was a first by a Southeast Asian country and a departure from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' refusal to condemn the invasion.[10][11]

The move was described by retired Singaporean diplomat Bilahari Kausikan as "almost unprecedented" as the last time Singapore imposed unilateral sanctions was in 1978 after the Vietnamese invasion of Kampuchea.

Singapore's Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said, "It is all too easy for a small country to be caught up in the geopolitical games of big powers. Small countries must avoid becoming sacrificial pawns, vassal states or 'cat's paws' to be used by one side against the other."

"Unless we as a country stand up for principles that are the very foundations for the independence and sovereignty of smaller nations, our own right to exist and prosper as a nation may similarly be called into question", he said, in a 20-minute speech in parliament.

In response, the Embassy of Russia in Singapore said in a post on its Facebook page that it regretted Singapore's decision to join "Western anti-Russian sanctions that circumvent the UN Security Council and is contrary to the principled position of the country against imposing unilateral sanctions", adding that it "runs against the friendly relations between Russia and Singapore as well as counter to the need of speedy and #peaceful settlement of the situation in #Ukraine, which the Russian Federation continuously advocates."[12]

External video
video icon Speech by Singapore's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Burhan Gafoor, Youtube video

At the eleventh emergency special session of the United Nations General Assembly on 2 March 2022, Singapore was a co-sponsor of Resolution ES-11/1, which deplored the Russian invasion and demanded a full withdrawal of Russian forces as well as a reversal of its decision to recognise the self-declared People's Republics of Donetsk and Luhansk. The resolution was passed with 141 voting in favour, 5 against, and 35 abstentions. Singapore's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Burhan Gafoor delivered an uncharacteristically strong message, calling the "unprovoked invasion" by Russia "a clear and gross violation of the fundamental norms" as well as an "existential issue" for small countries like Singapore.

The relations between Singapore and Russia has become tense after on 7 March 2022, Russia placed Singapore on a list of "unfriendly countries" along with the United States, European Union members, NATO members (except Turkey), Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Canada, Norway, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Micronesia and Ukraine. All corporate deals with companies and individuals on this list would have to be approved by a government commission. A presidential decree on 5 March 2022 allowed the Russian government, companies and citizens to temporarily pay foreign currency debts owed to overseas creditors from "unfriendly countries" in rubles.[13][14]

Russia slapped sanctions on EU, US and Singapore's energy firms on 12 May 2022.

Diplomatic representation
See also: List of ambassadors of Russia to Singapore and List of ambassadors of Singapore to Russia

In 1994, the Russian Federation appointed its first Ambassador to Singapore, M. M. Bely, who served from 1994 to 1999. In 1999, S. B. Kiselev became the second Ambassador to Singapore, followed by Andrey Rozhkov who served from 2005 to 2011. The current Russian Ambassador to Singapore is Andrey Alexeyevich Tatarinov.[15]

Singapore's first official representative to the Soviet Union was Chandra Das, who functioned in Moscow as Singapore's trade representative. The trade office was located in Hotel Ukraine in Moscow and on 4 May 1971, the embassy was open near the current Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Singapore's first Ambassador to the Soviet Union was P. S. Raman, who was appointed on 15 July 1971 and presented his credentials to the Soviet Government on 30 July 1971. The current ambassador is Premjith Sadasivan, who took up the position on 28 October 2019.[16]

References

Notes
  1. Snow 1998, p. 44.
  2. Hong 2006, p. 65.
  3. "Relations between Russia and Singapore". Archived from the original on 15 January 2016. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  4. "TODAY Online - Countries must work together to deal with shared problems: PM Lee". Government of Singapore. Archived from the original on 26 November 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  5. "The Russian risk takers at home in safe Singapore". South China Morning Post. March 31, 2018.
  6. "Celebrating 50 years of diplomatic relations between Russia and Singapore". June 13, 2018.
  7. "Putin begins meeting with Singapore's president". TASS.
  8. "Ukraine Ambassador to Singapore urges global solidarity, 'massive' sanctions on Russia". CNA. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
  9. "Singapore may join Russia sanctions; no major hit to trade sector, but risks remain". www.businesstimes.com.sg. 23 February 2022. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
  10. Heijmans, Philip (28 February 2022). "Singapore to Sanction Russia in 'Almost Unprecedented' Move". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  11. "Singapore to slap unilateral sanctions on Russia in 'almost unprecedented' move". South China Morning Post. 2022-02-28. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  12. "Embassy of Russia in Singapore". Facebook.
  13. "Russia says deals with 'unfriendly' countries will require approval". CNA. Retrieved 2022-03-08.
  14. "Putin issues list of countries that have carried out 'unfriendly actions' against Russia". MARCA. 2022-03-07. Retrieved 2022-03-08.
  15. "List of Ambassadors". Retrieved 30 March 2018.
  16. "About the Office". MFA Singapore. Retrieved 18 October 2021.

Works cited
  • Hong, Mark (2006), "Russia-Singapore Relations: Thirty-seven Years of Cooperation and Dialogue", in Chufrin, Gennadiĭ Illarionovich; Hong, Mark; Teo, Kah Beng (eds.), ASEAN-Russia relations, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, pp. 65–84, ISBN 978-981-230-359-2
  • Snow, Karen A. (1998), "Russian commercial shipping and Singapore, 1905-1916", Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, 29 (1): 44–62, doi:10.1017/S0022463400021470, S2CID 154327747
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