Thailand and Singapore have agreed to strengthen their strategic partnership in key areas, including green energy, defence and the digital economy.
Both countries will also deepen regional strategic coordination as they prepare to take on consecutive ASEAN chairmanships.
The agreement was reached at the fifth Thailand-Singapore Leaders’ Retreat, attended by Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and visiting Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong in Bangkok on Wednesday.
The meeting was the first such retreat between the two countries’ leaders in 11 years.
At a joint press conference, Anutin said both sides welcomed a Joint Statement on the “Thailand-Singapore Forward-Looking Strategic Partnership”, which will provide a framework for the future direction of bilateral relations and reflect their shared commitment to upgrading the strategic partnership.
The two sides also agreed to draw up four additional cooperation agreements covering the digital economy, transnational crime, food security and supply-chain resilience.
Thailand and Singapore will advance cooperation on clean and low-carbon energy, including the integration of the “Laos-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore Power Integration Project” as part of efforts to support the ASEAN Power Grid.
The two sides will also build on an existing arrangement for Thailand to supply 100,000 tonnes of rice to Singapore over five years and expand cooperation to other food products, Anutin said.
Singapore will also support Thailand’s bid to join the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Thailand will support Singapore’s ASEAN chairmanship in 2027 and work closely with Singapore to ensure continuity between Singapore’s chairmanship and Thailand’s in 2028.
On Myanmar, Anutin said he briefed Wong on Thailand’s approach to promoting greater and appropriate interaction between ASEAN and Myanmar, adding that Thailand would help serve as a bridge while promoting positive developments in Myanmar through “calibrated re-engagement”.
To translate the outcomes of the retreat into concrete action, Thailand will host meetings of the two countries’ foreign and trade ministers in the near future, Anutin said.
Wong said the retreat had reaffirmed the strength of the Singapore-Thailand partnership, describing the relationship as broad and substantive, built on trust and with considerable potential for further development.
The two countries are committed to strengthening cooperation in food and energy security, the digital economy and combating transnational crime, Wong said.
A musical exchange
During an official dinner hosted by Anutin at Government House, the Thai prime minister sang two songs — Let It Be by The Beatles and Bob Dylan’s Blowin’ in the Wind — while Wong played guitar.
Singapore also presented Anutin with two special gifts. The first was an “Architecture” classic art speaker designed by a leading Singaporean brand and inspired by Singapore’s distinctive breeze blocks of the 1950s, with a batik-patterned front reflecting Peranakan cultural heritage.
The second gift was a Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) Wings Patch bearing Anutin’s name and aviation call sign, “MICKEY”. It was specially made to reflect his interest in aviation and the close military cooperation between the RSAF and the Royal Thai Air Force.
