Speeches
F-15SG Rollout Ceremony
The Boeing Co, St Louis MO
Ambassador Patricia L. Herbold
November 3, 2008
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you to Mark Bass and Chris Chadwick and all their colleagues at Boeing for hosting this Rollout Ceremony for the F-15SG and for extending such a warm welcome to all of us here today.
I am delighted that Singapore’s Chief of Air Force, Major-General Ng Chee Kern, is here with us for this very special event.
The F-15SG program is yet another example of the excellent partnership between the U.S. and Singapore and highlights the dedication of our two countries to common security objectives.
Singapore’s armed forces train extensively with the U.S. military. Every year, close to 800 students attend Department of Defense schools and training programs. The United States proudly hosts Singapore’s F-16s at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona, Apache helicopters at Peace Vanguard in Arizona and Chinook helicopters at Peace Prairie in Texas. In addition to all these joint initiatives, we especially look forward to welcoming Singapore’s F-15SGs at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho next summer.
Furthering our partnership on the other side of the Pacific, the Government of Singapore built facilities at Changi Naval Base to accommodate U.S. Navy aircraft carriers. This has significantly enhanced the lives of thousands of sailors and marines who have enjoyed a safe, restful, and well-deserved liberty on the island.
Singapore is now building the Changi Command and Control Centre, which will act as a hub for the region. The United States and Singapore’s neighbors will have access to the Centre’s state of the art capabilities to combat terrorism, stop the transit of Weapons of Mass Destruction, and react quickly with Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief throughout Southeast Asia.
And on the subject of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, I want to mention that during Hurricane Katrina, Singapore sent four Chinook helicopters and 45 personnel from its unit in Dallas, Texas to rescue over 800 people from the New Orleans Superdome and also transport countless sandbags for the levee repair efforts.
Our Singapore friends have provided strong support, both in their words and deeds, for Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. During Operation Iraqi Freedom, Singapore provided Air Bridge access at Paya Lebar Air Base for up to 1,000 flights per month. Singapore not only gave Air Bridge access and port calls for our ships, but also deployed its KC-135 tankers, C-130s, and Landing Ship Tanks to the Gulf and continues to do so today.
In connection with Operation Enduring Freedom, Singapore has supported Provincial Reconstruction Teams in Afghanistan with engineers and dentists and will be sending a team of 20 medical doctors this month.
In addition to our excellent military relationship, Singapore has grown to be a strategic partner in the Southeast Asia region. It is home to the world’s largest container port, third largest oil refinery, and fourth largest financial center. Singapore clearly understands the importance of stability in the region.
Singapore provides a strong foundation for cooperation across the full range of security issues. Singapore works closely with its neighbors, Indonesia and Malaysia, and with the International Maritime Organization. Together, they tackle the difficult issues of safety and security in the Strait of Malacca, through which flows one-third of the world’s total trade and one-half of the world’s oil trade. This cooperation addresses a broad range of problems including piracy, people smuggling, narcotics trafficking, and terrorism. All users of the Malacca Strait, including the United States, benefit from this cooperation.
Singapore exercises leadership within ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which is comprised of 10 countries in the region. ASEAN is home to 570 million people and in 2006 had a combined GDP of over $1 trillion U.S. dollars. U.S. investment in ASEAN of almost $100 billion exceeds our combined investment in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. In 2007, American exports to ASEAN countries rose to over $60 billion, which makes the region our fifth largest trading partner - with Singapore receiving 43% of these exports.
Singapore also shares our understanding of the importance of working together to expand economic opportunity, fight corruption, combat terrorism, provide security, and safeguard public health. In jointly promoting security in Asia and beyond, Singapore has endorsed the principles of the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), the global initiative to stop shipments of weapons of mass destruction, their delivery systems, and related materials worldwide.
Singapore hosted the first maritime interdiction and port search exercise in Southeast Asia. Singapore was the first port in Asia to participate in the Container Security Initiative (CSI), which ensures that all containers that pose a potential risk for terrorism are identified and inspected at foreign ports before they are placed on vessels destined for the United States.
Singapore was the first Asian port to sign on to the “Megaports” initiative – a plan to deploy radiation detection capabilities at key ports around the world in order to screen cargo for nuclear and radioactive materials. Singapore also works closely with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to enhance the security of the supply chain for goods transshipping through Singapore to American ports. In adopting these strong measures, Singapore has ensured that its port is seen as an efficient, reliable and secure gateway.
These are just some of the examples that highlight the close and growing relationship between the United States and Singapore. Our partnership is based on common interests, substantial trade and investment ties, shared strategic perspectives, and continuing efforts to expand mutually beneficial cooperation. The F-15SG Program is yet another important step forward in our outstanding partnership with Singapore and it is a great honor to be here this morning with all of you to celebrate the roll out of the F-15SG.