Think Positive, Think Asean Tribune
Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan has written to Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov to express his condolences in response to the explosion at Listvyazhnaya mine, Siberia. The letter is appended.
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Singapore
Senior Minister (SM) and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean will make a working visit to Jakarta, Indonesia, from 29 November to 1 December 2021.
SM Teo will meet senior members of the Indonesian government, including Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Mahfud MD, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investments Luhut Pandjaitan, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, and Minister of Defence Prabowo Subianto. SM Teo will also meet other prominent Indonesian personalities.
SM Teo will be accompanied by officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other relevant agencies.
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Singapore
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong hosted Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, at the Istana earlier today. Prime Minister Ismail Sabri was accompanied by Malaysian Senior Minister of International Trade and Industry Dato’ Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali, Malaysian Minister of Foreign Affairs Dato’ Saifuddin Abdullah, Malaysian Minister of Transport Datuk Seri Ir. Dr. Wee Ka Siong, Menteri Besar of Johor Dato’ Hasni Mohammad, and senior officials.
Following an Official Welcome Ceremony, a new orchid hybrid, the DendrobiumIsmail Sabri Yaakob was named in Prime Minister Ismail Sabri’s honour. A factsheet on the orchid is at Appendix. Prime Minister Ismail Sabri made a courtesy call on President Halimah Yacob, and met Prime Minister Lee. The two Prime Ministers also held a Joint Press Conference before adjourning for an Official Lunch hosted by Prime Minister Lee.
President Halimah congratulated Prime Minister Ismail Sabri on his appointment, and underscored the need for Singapore and Malaysia to continue to build on their deep-rooted ties of kinship, culture and history.
During their meeting, Prime Minister Lee and Prime Minister Ismail Sabri affirmed the longstanding bilateral relations and close people-to-people ties that Singapore and Malaysia have forged over decades of mutual trust and cooperation. They noted with satisfaction that both sides have cooperated closely during the COVID-19 pandemic, including establishing the Reciprocal Green Lane (RGL) for official and business travel, the Periodic Commuting Arrangement (PCA) for workers, and facilitating compassionate travel via the Death and Critical Illness Emergency Visits (DCEV) scheme. Singapore and Malaysia have also worked closely together to ensure that supply chains were unaffected throughout the pandemic.
With the good progress made by both countries in bringing the COVID-19 situation under control, Prime Minister Lee and Prime Minister Ismail Sabri welcomed the timely launch of the Singapore-Malaysia Vaccinated Travel Lanes (VTL) on 29 November 2021 for travel by air and across the Causeway. The VTLs will reunite families and loved ones who were separated during the pandemic. They will also play a vital role in restoring Singapore and Malaysia’s bilateral and regional connectivity, as both countries adapt to COVID-19 endemicity. Both sides agreed to work towards gradually scaling up the capacity of the VTLs, and including more types of travellers from around mid-December 2021, taking into account the public health situation. Singapore and Malaysia will also work towards a VTL (Sea), and resuming port calls by cruise ships from Singapore to Malaysia.
Prime Minister Lee and Prime Minister Ismail Sabri also discussed other opportunities for collaboration that would be mutually beneficial to both peoples and economies in the longer term. This included the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link Project, which would enhance connectivity by providing a faster and more convenient option for travellers to commute between Singapore and Johor Bahru.
Prime Minister Ismail Sabri also accepted Prime Minister Lee’s invitation to visit Singapore again for an in-person Leaders’ Retreat in the first quarter of 2022.
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Singapore
H.E. Mr. Joseph Anthony Cotter, Ambassador of Ireland to Thailand, paid a courtesy call on H.E. Mr. Thani Thongphakdi, Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Thailand, on the occasion of the assumption of duty of the Permanent Secretary on 24 November 2021.
Both sides appreciated close and cordial relationship between Thailand and Ireland with more enhanced cooperation, despite slight disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Both sides were determined to hold the 1st Political Consultations between Thailand and Ireland in Dublin next year, as well as to move forward bilateral cooperation, particularly in the people-to-people exchanges between the two countries. Furthermore, both sides discussed cooperation in education which is one of the Ireland’s strengths, and mutual interests of both countries. Ireland has long provided scholarships to Thai students for graduate studies in Ireland, and is also looking into investment opportunities in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) of Thailand.
On multilateral front, both sides discussed enhanced cooperation within the frameworks of the ASEAN-EU and Thai-EU cooperation, in particular, with regard to the early conclusion of the Thai-EU Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) as well as the early resumption of the Thai-EU FTA negotiations. In addition, in response to Ambassador Cotter’s inquiries about Thailand’s chairmanship of APEC in 2022, the Permanent Secretary informed Ambassador Cotter of Thailand’s priorities under Thailand’s APEC chairmanship.
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of Thailand
A 32-year-old man will be charged in court on 30 November 2021 with ten counts of outrage of modesty under Section 354(1) of the Penal Code. The man had allegedly molested five women, aged between 24 and 38, during yoga classes in 2019 and 2020, while he was teaching as their yoga instructor.
Anyone convicted of outrage of modesty under Section 354(1) of the Penal Code shall be punished with an imprisonment term of up to two years, or a fine, or caning, or any combination of such punishments.
The Police have zero tolerance towards sexual offenders who threaten the personal safety of the community, and will deal with them sternly in accordance with the law.
Source: Singapore Police Force
The Police are appealing for the next-of-kin of 54-year-old Mr Peter Ng Quee Bee to come forward.
Mr Peter Ng Quee Bee, a former resident of Blk 172 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4, passed away on 26 November 2021.
Anyone with information is requested to call the Police hotline at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. All information will be kept strictly confidential.
Source: Singapore Police Force