A Singapore Navy frigate arrived in Zhanjiang on Thursday ahead of the bilateral Exercise Maritime Cooperation with the People’s Liberation Army (Navy), marking what the city state said was part of its efforts to build “mutual understanding and cooperation” with foreign partners.
Singapore’s Ministry of Defence said in a statement that the Formidable-class frigate RSS Stalwart, which berthed at Ma Xie Naval Base, would be used in the exercise from September 1 to 5.
This year’s Exercise Maritime Cooperation, the third in the series since it started in 2015, will comprise a shore phase at Ma Xie Naval Base from September 1 to 2 where personnel from both navies will plan exercises and have professional exchanges.
During a sea phase in waters off Zhanjiang from September 3 to 5, both navies will conduct a range of drills, including helicopter cross-deck landing, gunnery firing, search and rescue and manoeuvring exercises, as well as familiarisation of voice procedures for simulated firings, according to the ministry.
RSS Stalwart will also observe the PLA Navy ships, such as when they conduct vessel boarding and mine clearance drills.
Singapore’s defence ministry noted that the frigate was on the final leg of a three-month deployment which included multinational group sails from Singapore to Hawaii, Exercise Rim of the Pacific, a passage exercise with the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force, and Exercise Maritime Cooperation.
“RSN’s participation in these exercises is part of the ongoing efforts to enhance mutual understanding and cooperation with a wide network of international partners,” it said in the statement.
Singapore has maintained strong defence ties with China while keeping strategic relations with the United States, insisting that regional countries should not be pressured into taking sides in the superpower rivalry.
The city state also hosted a bilateral meeting with US defence chief Lloyd Austin and Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in May this year. It marked the first in-person meeting between the ministers since 2022.
China and Singapore shared long-standing, warm and friendly bilateral defence relations, Singapore’s Defence Ministry said in May, as Dong called on his Singapore counterpart Ng Eng Hen during his introductory visit to the city state.
In June 2023, Singapore and China signed an agreement to set up a hotline aimed at strengthening high-level communication between defence leaders from both sides.
A year earlier, defence ministers from China and Singapore said joint military exercises suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic would resume, and pledged to deepen defence ties. Then Chinese defence minister Wei Fenghe and Ng held talks at the inaugural Singapore-China Defence Ministers’ Dialogue, where they discussed global security issues.
In 2021, China and Singapore held a combined military drill in international waters at the southern tip of the South China Sea, following the upgrade of a bilateral defence pact in 2019 to include bigger-scale exercises among their army, navy and air force, Reuters reported.
In October 2019, both countries signed an enhanced Agreement on Defence Exchanges and Security Cooperation. This involved both sides pledging to formalise joint activities between the two militaries, as they called for defence cooperation to be “stepped up significantly”. It also included the establishment of a Visiting Forces Agreement for troops taking part in bilateral exercises and a mutual logistics support pact.
