SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will make his first trip to the Middle East as head of government this week, with stops in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
He will be in Doha from Oct 18 to 20, and visit Abu Dhabi and Dubai from Oct 20 to 22.
PM Wong’s visits are at the invitation of Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement on Oct 17.
His trip comes on the back of several visits to the region by Singapore’s ministers in 2026.
The visits will provide an opportunity for Singapore to exchange views with regional leaders on developments in the Middle East and reaffirm its support for dialogue and diplomacy, said the PMO.
Singapore can also strengthen its cooperation with Qatar and the UAE in areas of shared interests, particularly energy security and economic resilience, it added.
In Qatar, PM Wong will call on the country’s head of state Sheikh Tamim, said PMO.
Both leaders will co-chair the ninth Qatar-Singapore High-Level Joint Committee (HLJC).
Established in 2006, the HLJC is the key platform which charts the strategic direction for relations between the two countries. The committee last met in August 2023 in Singapore, with then Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean and Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani as co-chairs.
On this trip, PM Wong will also meet his counterpart Sheikh Mohammed, who is also Qatar’s foreign minister.
Qatar is Singapore’s third-largest trade partner in goods in the Gulf Cooperation Council, with total trade in goods reaching $8.53 billion in 2025.
The other member states of the regional bloc are Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Qatar is also a major producer and exporter of liquefied natural gas worldwide, and is one of Singapore’s key suppliers.
There were more than 10 visits between Singapore and Qatar’s ministers in the past year, including Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan’s trips to the nation in May and September.
Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing was also in Qatar in early October to reaffirm ties and discuss shared interests like professional exchanges between both states and lessons from recent conflicts.
In the UAE, PM Wong will first stop in Abu Dhabi to call on the Emirates’ President Sheikh Mohamed and meet Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
He will then travel to Dubai, where he will meet UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohamed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who is also the city’s deputy ruler.
The UAE is Singapore’s largest trading partner in the Middle East. In 2025, bilateral trade in goods hit $27.9 billion, and bilateral trade in services reached $12.8 billion in 2024.
Singapore and the UAE marked 40 years of diplomatic ties in 2025 and elevated bilateral relations to a comprehensive partnership in 2019.
Both countries also cooperate on the economy through the Abu Dhabi-Singapore Joint Forum, which recently held its 17th edition in Singapore in September.
During the trip, PM Wong will meet overseas Singaporeans at receptions in Doha and Dubai.
PM Wong will be accompanied by his spouse, Minister Balakrishnan, Minister for Energy, Trade and Industry (Energy and Industry) Tan See Leng, Minister of State for Home Affairs and Foreign Affairs Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim, and officials from the Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry and the PMO.
Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong will be the acting prime minister while PM Wong is away. - The Straits Times/ANN
