JERUSALEM - Singapore has expressed its concerns over the significant impact that plans by Israel to launch a military assault on the city of Rafah in Gaza will have on the estimated 1.5 million people sheltering there, said Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan.

Speaking to reporters on March 19 after meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as other officials and parliamentarians, Dr Balakrishnan said that while the hope is for at least an immediate humanitarian ceasefire to deliver aid to Gaza, he is pessimistic over the outcome of ongoing ceasefire talks.

Israel is facing mounting international pressure, including from its staunchest allies like the United States, to hold off plans for a ground offensive into Rafah, which Israel says is needed to eliminate Hamas militants in the Gaza border city.

World leaders who have spoken out against a military push into Rafah include German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who questioned the “terribly high costs” of the planned offensive after he met Mr Netanyahu in Jerusalem on March 17.

Mr Scholz had earlier warned that the large number of civilian casualties that would result from it would make regional peace “very difficult”.

Mr Netanyahu has said Israel will not bow down to pressure to call off its plans. He told lawmakers on March 19 that the Israeli military will go ahead with the expected ground operation.

Asked if bilateral ties would be affected if Israel carries out the assault on Rafah, Dr Balakrishnan said: “No, we will have to see what happens.”

“In the end, (Mr Netanyahu) is the man who has to make the decisions for Israel. He is accountable to his people, and he will also be accountable for the consequences,” the minister added.

Dr Balakrishnan, who has made repeated calls for a humanitarian truce in Gaza and the unconditional release of hostages, said Singapore must have a realistic appreciation of what it can do.

“We have stated our position, we have done what we can on humanitarian assistance. We stand ready to do more... But we also have to be prepared that this is another recurrent bout of violence in a very troubled part of the world,” he added.

The Foreign Minister was in Israel as part of a 10-day working trip to the Middle East, having already visited Doha in Qatar, Amman and Aqaba in Jordan, and Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.

Besides Mr Netanyahu, he also met Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz on March 19, as well as Israeli President Isaac Herzog, war Cabinet member Benny Gantz and former prime minister Naftali Bennett on March 20.

Reflecting on the conversations he had with the Israelis, Dr Balakrishnan said they were frank and sometimes brutal. “Where we have a difference... is we believe that the Israeli military response has now gone too far.”

He said he communicated this to Mr Netanyahu, Mr Katz and other Israelis he met. “To be fair, they hear us out, but it will not change their plans,” he added.

In a statement on March 20, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said Dr Balakrishnan had expressed Singapore’s sympathies to all the families affected by the Hamas attacks on Oct 7, and reiterated the Republic’s condemnation of the acts of terror.

MFA added that Dr Balakrishnan had, in his meetings, called for Israel to do its utmost to protect the safety of civilians and facilitate the swift and unhindered delivery of aid to Gaza, especially through land-based routes.

Dr Balakrishnan told reporters his sense was that the Israel-Hamas war may continue to drag on, despite a new round of talks in Qatar aimed at achieving a ceasefire and the release of hostages.

He said the Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct 7, 2023 – which he and the Middle Eastern leaders he met agreed were a clear, flagrant and heinous act of terror – have left a profound trauma on Israeli society and its sense of security and safety. “Frankly, there are some messages that they are not ready to listen to, and they will not accept,” he added.

Dr Balakrishnan said he has tried to make the argument that while security is essential, it is not sufficient as, without peace, “the threats to security are going to come back over and over again”.

“My concern is that after what has happened to both the Israelis and the Palestinians... it is fear and anger that prevails and not an immediate sense of hope for the future.”

MFA said Dr Balakrishnan had underscored Singapore’s support for a negotiated two-state solution as the only viable path towards a “comprehensive, just and durable peace” between both sides.

Asked whether his visit to Israel may spark a backlash at home, given strong sentiments from some Singaporeans about Israel’s role in the conflict, Dr Balakrishnan said such face-to-face meetings are even more important during crises and war. “We have to understand not just what is going on but why these things are happening, what are the thoughts of the leaders and, at the same time, to be able to clearly and unambiguously state our views,” he added.

“Singapore cannot afford to duck and (take) cover. We need to face the world as it is,” he said. “We may not like what is happening, we may disagree with the decisions they are making, but we must engage.”

Dr Balakrishnan’s next stops are the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. On the agenda will likely be discussions on how to deal with the immediate consequences of the Israel-Hamas conflict and what arrangements will be most helpful after the war ends.

The minister noted the importance of engaging across the entire spectrum of views, given the differing positions of different parties in the Middle East. “They do care about what we think, they do want to engage us, they do want to have good relations with us,” he said.

He emphasised the need for Singapore to continue to be credible, constructive and helpful, without shying away from expressing its own views and being true to its own principles.

“So long as we can continue to conduct foreign policy on this basis, with the support of all Singaporeans, we are on the right track.”