Singapore and South Korea to upgrade FTA, leaders say as President Lee pays state visit

[SINGAPORE] Singapore and South Korea will upgrade an existing Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to ride on strong growth of trade and economic ties between the two countries, said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.Speaking at a joint press conference with visiting South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on March 2, Wong noted that the global trading landscape has evolved significantly over the last two decades with greater emphasis on supply chain resilience, digital trade and the green transition, making the upgrade of the two-decade-old FTA a timely one. The FTA first came into force in 2006.South Korean President Lee, who is on a three-day state visit after taking office in June 2025, said that the upgrading of the FTA will fully reflect “evolving trade and economic security dynamics, as well as technological advances”, and advance the two countries’ investment cooperation in a more strategic manner.Both South Korea and Singapore are now among each other’s top 10 trading partners.In 2025, South Korea was Singapore’s seventh largest trading partner, while Singapore was South Korea’s ninth largest trading partner. Singapore’s investments in South Korea have more than doubled since 2020, said Wong, with companies like PSA, Singapore Airlines and CapitaLand deepening collaboration with South Korean partners across the fields of logistics, aviation and real estate.South Korean firms like Hyundai, Lotte Group and Hanhwa Ocean are leveraging Singapore as a regional hub to access opportunities across South-east Asia and beyond. The enhanced FTA aims to strengthen cooperation in areas such as supply chain resilience, green economy, trade facilitation, and aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul, fostering deeper collaboration and new opportunities for mutual growth. Lee said that a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Investment Partnership signed between the Korea Development Bank and Seviora Holdings, an asset management firm backed by Temasek, will spearhead this investment cooperation.Singapore and South Korea are also partnering with each other to advance green energy ambitions, with a Nuclear Cooperation Agreement currently in the works.“Singapore is studying the potential of nuclear energy as part of our longer-term energy mix, and we hope to learn from Korea’s expertise and experience,” said Wong, who added that he looked forward to the agreement’s swift conclusion.These projects are built on the strong momentum generated in the four months since South Korea and Singapore elevated ties to a strategic partnership in November 2025, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations.Singapore and South Korea established diplomatic ties in 1975.The strategic partnership sets a road map for deepening and expanding bilateral cooperation in existing and new areas across the five pillars of political, security and public sector cooperation; trade and economic cooperation; sustainability, the green economy and energy transition; advanced technology and research and development; and people-to-people exchange.Lee said that both South Korea and Singapore have, over the past century, demonstrated remarkable potential to rise as exemplary middle powers, turning limited natural resources and geopolitical challenges into platforms for advancement during the process of nation-building and modernisation.“Prime Minister Wong and I shared the view that, as we navigate yet another challenge – the era of hyper-uncertainty in the 21st century – our two countries can become reliable partners,” said Lee. Lee’s visit to Singapore comes four months after Wong’s first official trip to South Korea in November 2025, which followed his participation at the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders’ Meeting, held in the city of Gyeongju.Accompanied by his wife First Lady Kim Hea Kyung, cabinet ministers and senior officials, Lee arrived in Singapore on the evening of March 1 and was received by Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth David Neo.On the morning of March 2, he and his wife were received by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Mrs Jane Ittogi Shanmugaratnam at a welcome ceremony at the Old Tanglin Officer’s Mess at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) headquarters in Tanglin.Lee and his wife also had an orchid named in their honour – Vanda Lee Jae Myung Kim Hea Kyung – during the ceremony.After the welcome ceremony, Lee made a courtesy call on Tharman and then met Wong, also at the MFA headquarters.At the joint press conference following their summit, Lee and Wong witnessed the exchange of five memorandums of understanding to enhance cooperation in the areas of trade, energy security, science and technology, intellectual property, the environment, and public safety and security.Lee was then hosted to lunch by Wong at the Fullerton Bay Hotel and will attend an artificial intelligence business forum involving entrepreneurs and business leaders from both South Korea and Singapore later in the afternoon. Later this evening, Lee and his wife will be hosted to a State Banquet by President Tharman. THE STRAITS TIMES