U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has arrived in Singapore to take part in the Shangri-La Dialogue—an annual forum on security and defense in the Asia-Pacific region.
Even before the conference began, Hegseth held several bilateral meetings.
One of them was with Singapore’s prime minister, Lawrence Wong. According to Wong, the two sides reaffirmed the strength of ties between Singapore and the United States and discussed regional and global security issues.
“I met with U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth ahead of today’s Shangri-La Dialogue. We reaffirmed 60 years of strong relations between Singapore and the United States and exchanged views on regional and global security issues. We look forward to continuing our partnership for peace and stability,” Wong wrote on X.
Hegseth then met with Vietnam’s president, To Lam, and said defense cooperation between the two countries would continue to expand.
“A strong Vietnam makes the region safer,” he wrote on X.
Hegseth also met Thailand’s defense minister, Adul Boonthamcharoen, for the first time since taking office.
“We intend to finalize a new Joint Vision Statement by the end of the year and are exploring opportunities for U.S.-Thai cooperation in the defense industry,” Hegseth wrote on X.