Speeches
Speech by Minister for Defence Chan Chun Sing Republic of Singapore Navy’s First Offshore Patrol Vessel Launch on 1 October 2026 at Berne, Germany
2 October 2026
Federal Minister of Defence, Mr Boris Pistorius and Mrs Pistorius,
Local leaders and officials,
Managing Owners of Fassmer, Harold and Holger Fassmer,
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
A very good afternoon to all of you.
First, I must say that I am tempted to say that I fully agree with whatever Boris has mentioned. That is because the both of us have met a couple of times, and we share many things in depth and in detail, and it is a very special relationship.
I must say that this relationship is special not just between Boris and myself, but it is special because of the links between the two navies, the two shipyards, and more importantly, between the two people and the two countries.
We have a longstanding and wide-ranging relationship not just between two shipyards and two navies, but also across the armed forces and the people of our two countries. What makes the relationship so special is the special trust that we have in one another. In today’s world, we all know and we keep talking about the uncertainties that we are confronted with.
Behind all these uncertainties - and having to manage all these uncertainties, what remains unchanged is the need for us to look for partners whom we can trust, and are reliable even in the toughest of times. I am happy to say that we have that in Germany. So, thank you Boris and your team, for the friendship and the trust that you have between the two countries and the two navies. Thank you very much.
As Boris mentioned, this project is not just a buyer-seller relationship. We are not here just to buy the ship, a boat, from the German industry. This project is also a symbol of the kind of deep relationship that we have between the two navies and between our two countries.
A ship is built in a couple of years, but the ship will stay with us for a couple of decades, and throughout the couple of decades, it is that constant interaction between the people and the navies that makes this special. We have heard of the many good things about the design of this ship, and I will not repeat them. But beyond the good things that have been mentioned, I want to emphasise one thing – this is not a static design where we are just satisfied with what we have designed and have built together.
I would rather see this as a living design - a design whereby, yes, it is the best of its class for today, but with a determination for us to want it to be the best of its class for many more years to come. And with that, we constantly share the data, share the operational experience, and keep improving the design throughout the entire life cycle of this ship.
This is what makes this relationship so special between Fassmer, Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA), ST Engineering, the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN), and the German Navy. It is this constant iteration to want to do better that makes this relationship so special.
Next, I will say that while the missions might change, to become more interesting, more exciting or more challenging, what has not changed – and what must not change – is the spirit of our people. The spirit of our people to overcome and to keep improving on what they have, and never be satisfied with what we have been able to achieve so far, working together.
There are always many more things that we can do together and many more things that we can do better together - with mutual respect, understanding each other's needs, and helping one another to solve problems by coming up with new and innovative solutions.
This is what makes me very proud of the relationship between Singapore and Germany, between the armed forces of both sides, and between the people of both sides. So, we see Germany as a trusted partner in these turbulent times, and this morning, Boris and I shared that the more turbulent the world is, the more we need trusted partners whom we can rely upon to deliver in good times and tough times.
Over the last few years, we have had our share of tough times, and we know how much we can rely on one another. I want to thank Boris and your team, for the effort behind the scenes of what the two navies and the two armed forces have been able to achieve together.
Many of the things we will not be able to share publicly, but deep in our hearts, we are very grateful for all the things that we have been able to do together quietly behind the scenes. Thank you once again for that trust.
Last but not least, I must say this - while we have a new ship today, it is an ongoing journey for the Singapore Armed Forces - Army, Air Force, Navy, and the Digital and Intelligence Service - to keep striving for excellence, not just to prepare for today's challenges, but also for tomorrow's challenges. This example that we have behind us, and in front of you, is an example of that commitment to build a ship that is best in its class for today's needs, but always with the potential to add new capabilities that will allow us to plug and play, and to meet new and emerging threats.
We will never be able to design a ship that can cater for all the threats in the next 30 years, upfront, but we can certainly design a ship with the capabilities and the capacity to keep adding new capabilities as we go on. This is how we will continue to work in Singapore, and this is how we will continue to work with our partners in Germany.
We welcome Fassmer’s interest to expand your collaboration with Singapore, not just for the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN), but also to other regional partners. Singapore will not just be your partner in a bilateral sense. Singapore will also be a partner for you to have a platform to reach out to the wider Asia-Pacific and Southeast Asia region.
So, on that note, I want to thank Fassmer for your steadfast friendship. I know that we are very demanding customers. You are not the first one, and you will not be the last one to tell us that. We take that as a backhanded compliment because, as you say, we demand standards; we help one another to keep improving. That is the joy of working with the German Armed Forces, the German Navy, and the German industries. As we said this morning, we have the same culture and we understand one another - we mean what we say and say what we mean, and we have to keep improving.
This is why even though we have challenges along the way, we find it so joyful and meaningful to be able to work with our German counterparts. So, thank you very much for your friendship.
Last but not least, it gives me great pleasure to have this ship officially launched, and I wish all the generations of RSN personnel who serve on this ship that you will always have the interests and the mission of our nation at heart.
We will always remember why we wear the uniform to serve in a very difficult environment, and why every day we put on that uniform to keep serving, because we want our country to be at peace and stable, and we want Singapore to be able to defy the course of history, to survive and thrive for many more years to come.
I want to thank all the generations of men and women in the RSN who have served and who will continue to serve and will keep our nations and our sea lines of communications free and accessible to all.
Thank you very much.
More Resources
Fact Sheet: Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs)