Commander of the US Pacific Command Receives Prestigious Military Award

The Commander of the United States Pacific Command (US PACOM), Admiral (ADM) Harry Harris, was conferred Singapore's prestigious military award, the Pingat Jasa Gemilang (Tentera) [or Meritorious Service Medal (Military)], by President Halimah Yacob. Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen presented the award to ADM Harris at an investiture ceremony held at the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) this afternoon.

ADM Harris was conferred the award for his significant contributions toward enhancing the longstanding and excellent defence relations between the United States and Singapore. Under his leadership, US PACOM and the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) have made significant progress on initiatives under the 2005 Strategic Framework Agreement and the 2015 enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement. This includes the United States Navy (USN)'s rotational deployments of P-8 Poseidon aircraft to Singapore since 2015, as well as the continued rotational deployments of the USN's Littoral Combat Ships. With ADM Harris' guidance, our armed forces have established bilateral collaboration in non-conventional security areas, including humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, cyber defence and biosecurity.

ADM Harris oversaw the launch of new high-end bilateral training opportunities between US PACOM and the SAF over the course of his tenure, such as the inaugural bilateral naval exercise Pacific Griffin in Guam in 2017. Such initiatives have provided significant professional value for both sides, and have enhanced the interoperability and deepened the camaraderie between our armed forces. ADM Harris has also been a steadfast advocate for a strong regional security architecture. Under his leadership, US PACOM has made important contributions to the activities and exercises held under the ambit of the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting - Plus Experts' Working Groups.

On receiving the award, ADM Harris said, "I'm deeply honoured to receive this prestigious award, but what I believe is more noteworthy is the significant leadership by Singapore in this very challenging region. The partnership between Singapore and the US supports fundamentally the rule of law which, in turn, enables the region's prosperity and stability. The SAF's pursuit of more bilateral activities and complex training opportunities with PACOM is what made many of these inaugural events achievable. This award is less about one individual and more about recognising the deepening relationship between our militaries and our countries."

ADM Harris, who is in Singapore from 17 to 18 October 2017, called on Dr Ng, Chief of Defence Force Lieutenant-General Perry Lim, and inspected a Guard of Honour contingent at MINDEF prior to the investiture.