External engagements important for advancing S'pore's interests: PM Wong

He will continue to strengthen international partnerships while attending to domestic concerns

- Tham Yuen-C

KUALA LUMPUR - As a small country, Singapore must continually look outside to build connections, advance its interests abroad and enlarge its operating space to bring benefits to its people, said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

This is why he will continue to strengthen the Republic's international partnerships while he attends to Singaporeans' domestic concerns, PM Wong said on June 12 at the conclusion of his first overseas trip since taking office.

PM Wong, who had made introductory visits to Brunei and Malaysia over two days, said that a lot of his work is to address issues Singaporeans care about such as cost of living, jobs and housing. But quite a large element involves engaging other countries.

This is as Singapore is not so large that it can afford to just focus on internal matters all the time, he said.

"We are a small country and the reality is we don't operate in a vacuum... I hope everyone understands that the introductory visits are taking place within this broader context," he said.

Noting that times have changed from when he started out as a civil servant in 1997, he said every ministry is aware of the importance of having a strategy to engage their foreign counterparts, so that they can learn best practices from elsewhere and build partnerships that bring benefits to Singaporeans.