SINGAPORE - Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong received a seven-member United States Congressional delegation at the Istana on Saturday (June 4).

The delegation, led by Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) Senator John McCain (R-Arizona), consists of four other members of the SASC: Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), Senator Thomas Cotton (R-Arkansas), Senator Daniel Sullivan (R-Alaska), and Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa); as well as two members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyoming) and Senator Cory Gardner (R-Colorado).

At the meeting, Mr Lee welcomed the US sustained and multi-faceted engagement of the Asia-Pacific region, and in this respect reiterated the importance of the ratification of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement by the US Congress, said a Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) statement. The TPP is a free-trade deal involving 12 nations, including Singapore, the United States, Vietnam and Japan.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Singapore and the United States. Mr Lee and the US delegation affirmed the robust and long-standing relationship between both nations, which encompasses strong economic, defence and people-to-people ties, as well as close cooperation on global and regional issues.

The delegation is in Singapore to attend the Shangri-La Dialogue. They also met separately with Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law K Shanmugam, and Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen.