Japan-Singapore Relations

On July 8, for approximately 30 minutes starting from 10:50 a.m., Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a meeting with H.E. Mr. Lee Hsien Loong, Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore in Germany, where the leaders were visiting to attend the G20 Summit. The overview of their meeting is as follows. Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Kotaro Nogami and other officials were also present at the meeting. 

1. Prime Minister Abe started the meeting by hailing the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between the two nations last year as a great success, including the visit to Japan by Prime Minister Lee and the State Visit to Japan by His Excellency Dr. Tony Tan Keng Yam, the President of the Republic of Singapore, and stated that he wished to further develop the cooperative relations over the next half century. Prime Minister Lee expressed his condolences over the flooding in Kyushu and stated that he wanted to bring the bilateral relations forward building upon the various achievements during the 50th anniversary of the diplomatic relations last year. 
2. Regarding the Malaysia-Singapore high-speed railway project, Prime Minister Lee hoped to see a robust proposal to be submitted from Japan when Singapore would commence the tendering process by the end of the year, and Prime Minister Abe stated in reply that he strongly expected the introduction of Japan’s Shinkansen system as Japan would make a proposal that would meet the requirements of Singapore.
3. Prime Minister Abe noted the fact that agreement in principle had been reached for the Japan-EU EPA, and the two leaders affirmed that they would collaborate closely with the aims of early realization of the TPP and the early conclusion of a high standard RCEP.
4. The two leaders also exchanged views on the issues surrounding the South China Sea and North Korea, and confirmed that they would cooperate closely on these issues. Furthermore, Prime Minister Abe asked for understanding and cooperation toward early resolution of the abduction issue, for which he obtained Prime Minister Lee’s support.