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, PM 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 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.

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 PM 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 Hanwha 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, the green economy, trade facilitation, and aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul, fostering deeper collaboration and new opportunities for mutual growth. 

Mr 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 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 PM Wong, who added that he looked forward to the agreement’s swift conclusion.

The 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 their diplomatic relations.

Singapore and South Korea established diplomatic ties in 1975.

The strategic partnership sets out 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.

Mr Lee said 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 Mr Lee. 

Mr Lee’s visit to Singapore comes four months after Mr 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, Mr 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, President Lee and his wife were received by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Mrs Jane Ittogi Shanmugaratnam at a welcome ceremony at the Old Tanglin Officers’ Mess at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) headquarters in Tanglin.

Mr Lee and his wife also had an orchid named in their honour – Vanda Lee Jae Myung Kim Hea Kyung – during the ceremony. The orchid hybrid features patterns reminiscent of the four black trigrams in South Korea’s national flag.

“I am truly honoured to have this beautiful, fragrant orchid named after me,” Mr Lee told Mr Tharman during the ceremony.

After the welcome ceremony, President Lee made a courtesy call on President Tharman and then met PM Wong, also at the MFA headquarters.

During their summit, Mr Lee and Mr Wong agreed to explore developing frameworks to deepen bilateral cooperation in artificial intelligence, digital issues and cybersecurity.

They also discussed the importance of strengthening air connectivity to facilitate growing travel demand, MFA said in a statement released on March 2.

At the joint press conference following their summit, Mr Lee and Mr Wong witnessed the exchange of five MOUs to enhance cooperation in the areas of civil nuclear energy, science and technology, intellectual property, digital technology in public safety and security, and the environment.

These agreements reflect the breadth and depth of the strategic partnership, said MFA.

Mr Wong and Mr Lee also discussed regional and international developments, including the importance of working together to uphold free trade and the rules-based international order.

Mr Wong welcomed Mr Lee’s vision to advance the ASEAN-ROK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership that was unveiled at the ASEAN-Korea summit in Kuala Lumpur in October 2025. ROK is the abbreviation for the Republic of Korea, South Korea’s formal name. 

In a post on X before his arrival in Singapore on March 1, Mr Lee had written that South Koreans hold “a special affection for ASEAN”, with the region being the most visited by South Korean travellers in 2025. 

He added that South Korea and ASEAN have grown together “over decades of deep trust and friendship”, and that he hopes to visit all ASEAN member states during his five-year presidency term, beginning with his visits to Singapore and the Philippines. 

The Philippines is currently the ASEAN chair, with Singapore set to take over as chair in 2027.

Mr Lee was later hosted to lunch by Mr Wong at The Fullerton Bay Hotel, where he was treated to a lo hei experience. Mr Lee later posted a video on his new account on the short-video platform TikTok, which was set up just days ago on Feb 28.

After the lunch, Mr Lee attended the Korea-Singapore AI Connect Summit at the Shangri-La Hotel, where he announced that South Korea will establish a US$300 million (S$382 million) K-Global Mother Fund (K-VCC) in Singapore by 2030, an initiative aimed at accelerating the global expansion of AI companies in both countries.

Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, who also attended the AI Connect Summit, said that South Korea and Singapore share a common vision of AI as a “transformative force for the future”.

He suggested that both countries could consider collaborating in the areas of developing trusted supply chains, formulating interoperable global standards for AI and the interoperability of AI systems.

Dr Balakrishnan called South Korea “an optimal and ideal partner” for Singapore. 

Under the National AI Research and Development Plan announced in January, Singapore will invest more than $1 billion between 2025 and 2030, focusing on both fundamental and applied AI research, and AI talent development.

Mr Lee was hosted to a state banquet by President Tharman in the evening of March 2, and will depart for Manila on March 3.