Minister for Defence Encourages Militaries to Step up Practical Cooperation at the 13th Shangri-La Dialogue

Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen speaking at the fifth plenary session of the 13th Shangri-La Dialogue.

Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen spoke at the Fifth Plenary of the 13th Shangri-La Dialogue (SLD) today on the topic "Ensuring Agile Conflict Management in the Asia-Pacific", alongside French Minister for Defence and Veterans Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian. In his speech, Dr Ng emphasised that Asia's political challenge was to "ensure that the circles of aspirations and ambitions of individual countries intersect as widely as possible to protect the global commons of peace and stability".

To ensure agile conflict management, Dr Ng said that Asia therefore needed to build more resilient mechanisms to forge consensus and political will, as well as strengthen existing multilateral frameworks and step up practical cooperation between militaries to forge mutual trust and understanding. Dr Ng also met with China's 12th National People's Congress Foreign Affairs Committee Chairperson Fu Ying and Mr Le Drian separately on the sidelines of the SLD today. Mr Le Drian and Mdm Fu Ying had also separately called on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Friday and Saturday respectively.

Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen meeting with China's 12th National People's Congress Foreign Affairs Committee Chairperson Fu Ying on the sidelines of the 13th Shangri-La Dialogue.

Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen meeting with French Minister of Defence and Veterans Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian on the sidelines of the 13th Shangri-La Dialogue.