Singapore and Australia pledge enhanced partnership in 2025

Singapore and Australia are set to strengthen their partnership in 2025, with their leaders vowing to collaborate in new and strategic ways amid geopolitical uncertainty.

The announcement was made at the 9th Singapore-Australia Annual Leaders’ Meeting in Melbourne on March 5.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong paid great attention to such areas as fields of renewable energy, supply chain resilience, artificial intelligence and air connectivity. He also added that these areas fit well with the priorities of both countries.

Lee emphasized the compatibility of both countries in world views and strategic perspectives on the region and on international affairs.

The leaders also gave an update on the Singapore-Australia Green Economy Agreement, which was signed in October 2022. Lee highlighted substantial advancements in initiatives aimed at facilitating the trade of environmental goods and services, as well as promoting investments in the green economy.

A new addition to the partnership between Singapore and Australia was the memorandum of understanding on a Green and Digital Shipping Corridor. It will focus on the decarbonization and digitalization of maritime transport, as well as a set of principles that both sides have jointly developed to govern cross-border electricity trade for the region.

In 2025, Singapore and Australia will celebrate 10 years since forging a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) and 60 years of diplomatic relations. To commemorate this milestone, there are plans to formulate an “ambitious” plan for the upcoming phase of collaboration, referred to by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as “CSP 2.0.”

Both leaders are confident that their future cooperation will be characterized by ambition, a forward-looking approach and trailblazing efforts, and will also include initiatives in sectors such as food security, energy security, cybersecurity and critical technologies.