Myanmar's Relations with Singapore and ASEAN

Assoc Prof Fatimah Lateef asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs with the liberalisation and opening up of Myanmar recently, what is the state of Myanmar's bilateral relations with Singapore and the larger ASEAN community.

Dr Lim Wee Kiak asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs whether ASEAN has set any progress targets for Myanmar before Myanmar takes over the chair of ASEAN in 2014 and, if so, what are these targets.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr K Shanmugam): Sir, with your leave, I will take Question Nos 11 and 12 together.

Mr Speaker: Yes, please.

Mr K Shanmugam: Singapore and Myanmar enjoy good and long-standing bilateral relations. We cooperate well bilaterally and within ASEAN. Recently, the Myanmar President made a state visit to Singapore. That visit further affirmed the close friendship between our countries. During the visit, Myanmar Foreign Minister and I signed a Memorandum of Understanding between our two governments on the Singapore-Myanmar Technical Cooperation Programme. This underscores our commitment to support Myanmar with capacity-building in economic and human resource development, as well as public administration.

Our belief is that this is a good way to assist, as the need for trained people in many fields is likely to increase in Myanmar. Our cooperation on capacity building and human resource development goes back some way. We have worked with Myanmar under the auspices of the Singapore Cooperation Programme. Myanmar has been one of the largest recipients of our technical assistance. We also made humanitarian contributions after the devastating Cyclone Nargis in 2008. The Myanmar government appreciated the US$5 million that we disbursed for relief efforts. These included the deployment of a medical team, the building of a hospital, tube-wells, as well as shelters for the Cyclone survivors. Assoc Prof Fatimah Lateef was one of the dedicated members of the Singapore medical team that helped the survivors.

Bilateral cooperation is not confined at the governmental level. A Singapore Business Federation delegation is currently in Myanmar to explore economic opportunities. We hope to develop more links with Myanmar as the country opens up economically and politically. Members may recall that in 2005, Myanmar voluntarily decided to skip its turn as Chair of ASEAN. At that time, the ASEAN Foreign Ministers agreed to allow Myanmar to become the Chairman when it was ready. In October 2011, Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, in his capacity as Chair of ASEAN, visited Myanmar to get a sense of ground developments. He delivered a good report that reflected on the positive steps taken by Myanmar. As a result of these positive developments, the ASEAN Leaders agreed at their Summit in November 2011 that Myanmar would assume the ASEAN Chairmanship in 2014.

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Singapore welcomes Myanmar's Chairmanship in 2014. ASEAN has never set any specific pre-conditions or "progress targets" for any ASEAN Chairmanship. ASEAN has taken the position that Myanmar should be allowed to follow the seven-step roadmap it had set for itself. The Chairmanship presents an opportunity for Myanmar to build on its current momentum. As ASEAN Chair, Myanmar will be the external face of ASEAN. It will have to defend not only its own interests and record, but also ASEAN's interests. Myanmar will also have to reassure our external partners that under its Chairmanship, ASEAN would continue to make progress towards an ASEAN Community in 2015. The world will be watching. Given the stakes, I am confident that Myanmar will work hard to make its ASEAN Chairmanship a success. Singapore will offer to work with Myanmar to ensure successful outcomes under its 2014 Chairmanship.

Dr Lim Wee Kiak: Sir, let me thank the Minister for his reply. I would like to ask the Minister this question. Yes, we are encouraged by the progress and the reform that is made by the Mynamar government currently. In the event they do not follow through with the seven-step roadmap that the Minister has highlighted, or in the event they regress on their reforms within the next two years, will there be any possibility of ASEAN reviewing the Chairmanship for Myanmar?

Mr K Shanmugam: Sir, in foreign policy terms, these are hypothetical questions as to what might happen, what ASEAN might do – 10 members of ASEAN – should Myanmar fail to do certain things. First, I think we should acknowledge the current position, which is that there have been significant developments in ASEAN which I have put on record, and we should encourage those developments. If the course changes, we must look at that and consider, and we will cross that bridge when we come to it.

Assoc Prof Fatimah Lateef (Marine Parade): Sir, I thank the Minister for the response. We know that there are long-standing economic sanctions, especially by the West, on Mynamar. So, I am wondering how crucial does the ASEAN members, and also the Minister, think that the lifting of the sanctions is to opening up the region even further.

Mr K Shanmugam: ASEAN Foreign Ministers recently called for the lifting of sanctions and we were quite unequivocal about it. We have always believed that sanctions may not be the best way to deal with the situation in Myanmar. In my recent visit to the United States, I said publicly as well as with various influential congressmen and women that I met, the United States, as Members might know, has made a number of reciprocal gestures as well in the context of its dealings with Myanmar. The lifting of sanctions is to be seen in the context not so much of opening up of the region as a whole but primarily to be seen to be in the interest of Myanmar. And in a secondary context, when we do talk about ASEAN connectivity in 2015, creating a centre with 600 million people, creating physical and social connectivities, obviously sanctions against any particular member are not the most helpful. So, in a number of context, we have indicated that sanctions ought to be lifted. And, I think, increasingly, the response both by the United States and the European Union has been positive.

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