Asst Prof Tan Kheng Boon Eugene: To ask the Minister for Defence (a) what is the additional commitment and resources anticipated of Singapore vis-à-vis the security aspect of the US's 'pivot' towards Asia and the Pacific strategy; and (b) what is the Ministry's assessment of the impact of the US 'pivot on Asia' strategy on Sino-Singapore bilateral relations and the existing balance of power in the Asia-Pacific region.

Dr Ng Eng Hen: Mr Speaker, the United States is widely acknowledged to have played a key role for the past half a century in providing the security within the Asia-Pacific region that facilitated the development and progress of its regional countries, Singapore included.

Singapore therefore welcomes the US' continued engagement of this region to ensure Asia's prosperity and security. In recognition of the US' positive influence in the region, we have allowed US military aircraft and vessels to use our facilities for several decades - first, under our 1990 Memorandum of Understanding and later in 2005, under the Strategic Framework Agreement signed by PM Lee and then-President George W. Bush. The recent announcement of the deployment of up to four US Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) to use our military facilities is consistent with these signed agreements.

US ships and planes use our facilities for transit and are not based in Singapore. Their crew members do not live here. Similarly, the LCS crew will live on board their ship for the duration of their deployment, and their family members will not live in Singapore.

The member asked about China. For China, Singapore recognises that it is a rising power in Asia and a critical security partner of this region. The US-China relationship is the most important relationship that will affect the peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region. Singapore is therefore heartened to note that both sides have openly committed to building a cooperative partnership based on mutual respect and benefit. That said, elements of competition and even strategic rivalry can be expected, and much work remains for both countries to foster positive ties.

Ultimately, Singapore is friends with both, and hopes that the US-China relations flourish. We do not wish to see their relations deteriorate, and indeed, both sides, China and US, have openly affirmed that the Asia-Pacific region is big enough to accommodate both the US and China. Other nations need not choose better relations with one at the expense of the other. Instead, all stakeholders should work towards an inclusive regional security framework that builds common understanding and cooperation. To achieve this, the ASEAN Defence Ministers and their "Plus" partners[1] are expanding dialogue and enhancing military-to-military interactions through the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting and other multilateral fora.

[1] The eight "Plus" countries are: Australia, China, India, Japan, ROK, New Zealand, Russia and the US.