Prime Ministers Lee Hsien Loong and Shinzo Abe also reaffirmed the importance of protecting and upholding a rules-based international and regional order.

TOKYO: Singapore welcomes Japan playing a more active role in the region, and hopes to see Japan work closely with ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) to further deepen economic relations, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Wednesday (Sep 28).

Mr Lee, who is in Japan on an official visit, was speaking at a media conference with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, after they both held a summit meeting.



Advertisement

The leaders, who are meeting for the ninth time since 2013, had a “fruitful discussion”, according to Mr Lee, on issues ranging from economic cooperation to regional peace and stability.



Singapore and Japan are each other’s top Asian investors. Japan was Singapore’s second largest investor, after the US, with a cumulative direct investment of S$109.4 billion as of end-2014. Meanwhile, with a cumulative investment of US$15.1 billion at end-2015, Singapore is Japan’s top Asian and fifth largest foreign direct investor.



“Prime Minister Abe and I agree that we can do much more together,” said Mr Lee, adding that he hopes to see progress on reviewing and upgrading the free trade agreement (FTA) between Singapore and Japan, JSEPA (Japan-Singapore New-Age Economic Partnership Agreement).



The two countries are each other’s initial FTA partners. JSEPA, signed in 2002, is Japan’s first first bilateral economic partnership agreement and Singapore’s second. Singapore’s first FTA is with New Zealand.



Advertisement

Advertisement

ON TRADE DEALS



Apart from bilateral trade deals, the two countries agreed to “cooperate toward the early entry into force of the TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership)”, said Mr Abe.



“I am encouraged that the Diet is debating the TPP now, and Mr Abe expressed confidence that he would get support for the TPP and it would pass,” said Mr Lee, adding that Japan’s ratification is “very important”, as it’s the second largest economy in the TPP, and the third largest economy in the world.



Mr Lee also said that he hopes another multilateral FTA, the RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership), which includes China, makes “good progress” too.



ON REGIONAL PEACE AND STABILITY



Touching on the South China sea issue, Mr Abe said both leaders “reaffirmed the importance of the rule of law and collaboration in the international community”.



Mr Lee said that although Singapore is a non-claimant state and does not take sides on the competing territorial claims, it has “key interests to protect”.



“These include freedom of navigation and overflight, these include, also, a rules-based international and regional order - an order that upholds and protects the rights and privileges of all states and shows full respect for legal and diplomatic processes in the resolution of disputes,” he added.



The leaders also condemned North Korea’s recent series of provocations.



Mr Lee pointed out that Singapore supports the Abe Administration’s “Proactive Contribution to Peace” policy and the Peace and Security Legislation under the framework of the US-Japan Security Alliance.



On Wednesday, both leaders also witnessed the exchange of three cooperation agreements - a Memorandum of Cooperation on trade and investment promotion between International Enterprise Singapore and Japan External Trade Organization; a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on infrastructure project collaboration between Surbana Jurong and Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corporation for Transport and Urban Development, and an research collaboration MOU between Nanyang Technological University and Tokyo Institute of Technology.