Chief of Defence Force (CDF) Lieutenant-General (LG) Neo Kian Hong gives his take on the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), a year into the appointment. A PIONEER exclusive.
PNR: What are your observations and thoughts on the SAF, having been CDF for a year?
The SAF continues to be vigilant and operationally ready.
For example, the SAF deployed 116 servicemen to provide assistance within a day to the New Zealanders when the 22 Feb earthquake struck Christchurch.
This was followed by disaster relief teams, as well as one KC-135R and two C-130 aircraft. The troops had arrived two days earlier in New Zealand for a bilateral training exercise.
Further afield, our military institutional trainers in Kabul, Afghanistan are training members of the Afghan National Security Forces to help in building their local artillery capabilities.
In Uruzgan, our Imagery Analysis team continues to provide a useful niche capability by providing imagery analysis and intelligence support to our partners. Our medical team is also joining the task force shortly.
In the Gulf of Aden, Rear-Admiral Harris Chan recently took over as commander of the Combined Task Force 151, an international task force which combats piracy in the gulf. A maritime patrol aircraft from the SAF joined the operations in April.
At home, the SAF works closely with the home team to ensure that our key installations in Singapore are well protected.
For example, we have strengthened the national maritime security system with the formation of the Maritime Security Task Force, which coordinates with national maritime agencies to secure Singapore's sea lines of communication.
We work hard to be not only ready today, but also relevant for tomorrow. Our journey to transform into the 3rd Generation force continues in earnest.
Some of our key achievements include the inauguration of the first F-15SG squadron, conduct of the first High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) battery live firing in Exercise Daring Warrior last year, and the successful integration of our Sikorsky S-70B naval helicopters with our stealth frigates, which significantly expanded our naval capabilities.
What continues to encourage us in the SAF is the trust and confidence that the public has in us.
The SAF is held in high regard because our servicemen are committed, competent and professional, always willing to go beyond the call of duty to do the right things and do things well.
Our Full-time National Servicemen (NSFs) and Operationally-Ready National Servicemen (NSmen) devote a significant amount of their time, away from home and work, to meeting the needs of defence.
This would not be possible without the strong and sustained support of family members, employers and society at large.
As a national institution, we are committed to serving the nation well. We will maintain the trust and confidence of our people by ensuring that we do our jobs professionally and that we are accountable and transparent.
Though the SAF remains a small force in comparison with other armed forces, each Regular, NSF and NSman can take pride in the knowledge that they are part of a capable armed forces and a credible partner that is respected both locally and globally.
The vision for the SAF is to be full spectrum, adaptive and resilient. The SAF will be decisive in war but it must also be relevant in peace.
- LG Neo
The SAF is taking on more peace support roles. Will such operations beyond our shores be the focus in the future?
The SAF's primary mission remains the defence of Singapore's sovereignty and territorial integrity. We continue to maintain a high level of operational readiness by training our soldiers well and building a networked force through large-scale exercises such as Exercise Wallaby, Exercise Forging Sabre and Fleet exercises.
However, the security challenges we face today are transnational. Instability elsewhere in the world can affect us here at home.
Due to the cross-border nature of today's threats and challenges, no single country can effectively deal with them on their own and we will have to work together with other forces to ensure our continued security. Thus, safeguarding our national security interests today includes participating in international peace and security missions.
In the past decade, the SAF deployed over 2,300 servicemen overseas for such operations. Our contributions are not large but they are in niche areas where we have expertise and which our international partners find operationally useful.
Our ongoing reconstruction operations in Afghanistan and counter-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden are important contributions as part of international efforts. They are also very useful for us operationally to gain experience and keep components of our defence capabilities sharp.
Ultimately, participating in peace support operations helps to serve our primary mission of safeguarding Singapore's sovereignty. In short, the SAF must be both decisive in war and relevant in peace.
At which stage of the 3rd Generation transformation is the SAF now?
The transformation can be viewed as three complementary efforts: first, reorganising to be flexible and highly responsive for a full spectrum of today's operations; second, transforming the SAF into an advanced networked force; and third, preparing the people and training them into the 3rd Generation networked force.
We have completed the first effort of reorganisation. Various task forces, such as the Island Defence Task Force, Special Operations Task Force and Maritime Security Task Force, have been raised to guard against peacetime security threats. The Joint Task Force was also stood up to conduct overseas operations like those in Afghanistan and relief operations in Christchurch.
We continue to make good progress in the second effort to deliver the networked force. Even as new platforms like the F-15SGs, Leopard main battle tanks, HIMARS, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and Formidable-class frigates are added to our Order of Battle, what is more important is networking them together to create an integrated fighting system.
We saw some of the capabilities of this integrated fighting system in Exercise Forging Sabre conducted in Fort Sill, United States, where assets from the Air Force and Army operated in an integrated manner to destroy simulated enemies within minutes of detection.
A key enabler of the networked force is the raising of the C4I (Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence) community.
This community will ensure that dominance in the information domain becomes a key capability of our 3rd Generation force.
As the networked force takes shape, we are transforming our training and preparing our people to run the new organisation.
It is said that institutions do not transform. People do. And in so doing, they transform the institutions. We have to recruit and retain the best people. We also need to develop our people and maximise their potential.
- LG Neo
What will be required of the people of the SAF, as it continues this transformation?
Well, it is said that institutions do not transform. People do. And in so doing, they transform the institutions.
We have to recruit and retain the best people. We also need to develop our people and maximise their potential.
To allow our people to upgrade their capabilities and enhance their capacities, opportunities for continuing academic education and professional military education and training have been made available.
Our organisation has become more integrated. For example, we used to have over 100 motor transport lines in the SAF, one for each unit. Today, we have one transport system and the entire SAF benefits from one system.
Similarly, rather than having unit administrative branches, we now have a Personnel Command aimed at rationalising processes to improve manpower services.
As the organisation becomes more sophisticated, jobs will continue to be upgraded and more will be expected of our people.
For example, we have Senior Warrant Officer (SWO) Lee Sung Cheng who is now the Commanding Officer of the Specialist and Warrant Officer Advanced School (SWAS), and Military Expert 4 Kui Tuck Meng, now a senior marine engineer with RSS Resolution. These two appointments were previously held by commissioned officers.
The late Dr Goh Keng Swee once said that officers and men of the SAF must be self-critical, honest and tough, as "these qualities are in abundance in armies that win victories". This resilience is also what is required in our people and organisation.
The SAF must be adaptive, able to make sense of emerging situations, exploit our capabilities and work in multinational and multi-agency settings.
- LG Neo
Going forward, what is your vision for the SAF?
The vision for the SAF is to be full spectrum, adaptive and resilient. The SAF will be decisive in war but it must also be relevant in peace. Besides having a military force to defend our homeland when called upon, we must have flexible capabilities for a wide range of operational requirements. This is what it means to be full spectrum.
For example, we continue to make meaningful contributions to meet our national security interests, such as in Afghanistan and the Gulf of Aden.
Our operating environment has become more complex and uncertain. The modern battlefield is likely to be more urbanised, cluttered with civilians and non-combatants and under the full glare of media of various inclinations.
Every situation we face will likely be unique and ambiguous. The SAF must therefore be adaptive, able to make sense of emerging situations, exploit our capabilities and work in multinational and multi-agency settings.
But even the most capable, well-endowed and well-trained force may still be taken by surprise or knocked down. When faced with unexpected shocks, the SAF and our people must have the resilience and steel to persevere.
Last year, Lance Corporal (LCP) Ang Jun Heng, an NSF, was an innocent victim of a brutal attack around the Kallang area. Fortunately, he survived the attack after receiving numerous stitches to mend his head, face and body in a surgery which lasted 24 hours. Doctors saved him but they could not save four fingers on his left hand.
After recovering, LCP Ang, who was a recruit at the time of the incident, pushed himself to complete the gruelling Basic Diver Course despite the odds being stacked against him. LCP Ang showed the resilience and steel within him that allowed him to persevere.
What are some of the plans and initiatives that you intend to implement to achieve this vision?
The blueprint for the transformation of the SAF is largely in place. To achieve the vision, we must train the 3rd Generation force.
To conduct a full spectrum of operations, new and emerging situations are incorporated into our training so that we can raise new capacities and capabilities.
To ensure that the SAF is adaptive, we aim for our training systems to deliver a "Learning SAF of thinking warriors". An organisation that continues to learn both from historical and contemporary operations can guide troops better in their ground actions.
Warriors who take the initiative and are empowered to think and act are likely to be better at responding to challenges.
Soldiers continue to be given tough and realistic training to be resilient. In addition, they are taught "why" they should fight.
We also have an ongoing initiative to strengthen commitment to defence. This initiative encourages strong personal commitment from our soldiers, and seeks to build family, organisational and societal support as well. When our people are united, we are resilient not only as individuals but also as a whole nation.
The SAF will exploit information communications technologies to transform the way we work and train.
Through digital platforms like LEARNet, we will introduce new training concepts and pedagogies, such as self-directed, problem-based and collaborative learning. This is consistent with the habits and expectations of our increasingly tech-savvy soldiers.
What is your personal take on leadership and the qualities required of leaders in the SAF as it progresses on its transformation journey?
There is much said about leadership, but I feel three aspects stand out for our 3rd Generation leaders.
First, learning; second, communication and collaboration; and third, values. The 3rd Generation leader must be geared for learning. This is necessary to enable a full spectrum force. The leaders must know what to learn, where to learn from the best and how to persuade their subordinates to learn.
The 3rd Generation leader must also be able to communicate and work with others to lead changes.
With the deluge of information today, it may be increasingly difficult to know and be good at everything. Through collaboration, more can be achieved, and through good communication, our efforts will also be more coherent and coordinated.
However, the most important quality SAF leaders must have is a strong set of core values. Let me use the analogy of archery.
If the vision is the bull's eye on the target, and the tension in the string represents the drive to get to the outcome, then our values must surely be the guiding direction for the arrow to take flight.
Those whom we lead must trust and believe in us. In an increasingly uncertain and complex environment, the path ahead will be fraught with difficulties and we may be tempted to take short cuts.
Our leaders must be tough and their toughness must be underpinned by the SAF core values.
Only then will we be able to achieve our shared vision of a full-spectrum, adaptive and resilient SAF.
Even the most capable, well-endowed and well-trained force may still be taken by surprise or knocked down. When faced with unexpected shocks, the SAF and our people must have the resilience and steel to persevere.
- LG Neo
