SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will make an official visit to Brunei from Oct 9 to 10 as Singapore and Brunei mark 50 years of defence ties.
In Brunei, he will attend a joint parade featuring personnel and operational assets from the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) and Royal Brunei Armed Forces with Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah on Oct 10, said the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on Thursday (Oct 8).
PM Wong and the Sultan will then launch a commemorative gallery showcasing key milestones in the two countries’ defence relations, which were established in 1976. He will also be hosted to lunch by the Sultan.
During the trip, which is PM Wong’s third visit to Brunei as PM, he will witness the delivery of four Light Fire Attack Vehicles - more commonly known here as the Red Rhino - to the Brunei Fire and Rescue Department, which is under the country’s Ministry of Home Affairs.
Developed by Singapore engineering firm Hope Technik, the vehicles have been customised for Brunei’s operational requirements, said the PMO.
PM Wong will also meet SAF personnel training in Brunei’s easternmost district Temburong and engage them on their training experiences in the country.
He will be accompanied on the trip by his wife, as well as Coordinating Minister for Public Services and Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing, Minister of State for Home Affairs and Foreign Affairs Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim, Tanjong Pagar GRC MP Rachel Ong and officials from the PMO, the Defence Ministry and Foreign Ministry.
The trip comes about a week after Brunei Crown Prince Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah met PM Wong during an official visit to Singapore that ended on Oct 2.
During the five-day visit, Billah also met President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, and Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong, among other officials.
Both PM Wong and Lee have in 2026 lauded the “special relationship” between Singapore and Brunei that is built on decades of trust, cooperation, and personal ties between their people.
In July, Singapore and Brunei reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral ties when Lee visited the South-east Asian state for the Sultan’s 80th birthday celebrations.
Both countries said then that they would explore ways to deepen bilateral cooperation across a wide range of areas, including energy and food security, supply chain resilience and people-to-people exchanges.
In 2027, both countries will also mark the 60th anniversary of the Currency Interchangeability Agreement, which allows the Brunei and Singapore currencies to be used interchangeably in both countries.
Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong will be Acting Prime Minister while PM Wong is in Brunei. - The Straits Times/ANN
