Singapore, South Korea to deepen AI, start-up cooperation as strategic partners

The two nations also agreed to cooperate on liquefied natural gas supplies during a visit to the city state by South Korea’s Yoon Suk-yeol

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South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol (left) poses with Singapore’s Prime Minister Lawrence Wong before a meeting at Parliament House in Singapore on Tuesday. Photo: EPA-EFE/Yonhap

Published: 1:21pm, 8 Oct 2024Updated: 5:05pm, 8 Oct 2024

South Korea and Singapore have agreed to embark on a strategic partnership next year, marking the 50th anniversary of their establishment of diplomatic relations, the city state’s Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said on Tuesday.

The two nations signed an extradition treaty and will look to deepen cooperation in fields such as artificial intelligence, defence and climate change, as well as upgrade their free trade pact.

“The upgrade is not just a change in name; it also means more substantial cooperation,” Wong told a joint press conference with South Korean President Yoon-suk Yeol, who is on a state visit.

Both countries have many attributes in common, Wong added. “We were both ‘Asian Tigers’ that successfully transformed our economies,” he said.

“And because we have benefited greatly from regional peace and stability, we now seek to do our part to contribute towards the rule of law and strengthening the rules-based global order.”

In addition, South Korea, the world’s No 3 importer of liquefied natural gas (LNG), and Singapore, an LNG hub, signed a deal on cooperation in LNG supplies to benefit stability of the international supply chain, Yoon said in televised remarks.