1. Recognition of Ukraine’s independence: The Republic of Singapore recognized Ukraine’s independence on January 2, 1992.
2. Diplomatic relations: Diplomatic relations between Ukraine and Singapore were established on March 31, 1992.
In November 2020, H.E. Mdm Kateryna Zelenko was appointed the Ambassador of Ukraine to Singapore.
In April 2012, H.E. Mr. Simon Tensing de Cruz was appointed the non-resident Ambassador of Singapore to Ukraine (with residence in Singapore).
3. Political relations:
Ukraine and Singapore maintain active and friendly political dialogue.
In recent years, the visits of the President of Ukraine, ministers of foreign affairs, defence, interior and justice, top officials of the National Bank of Ukraine and the anti-corruption agencies have taken place. In 2022, a dialogue was launched between the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of Ukraine and the Parliament of the Republic of Singapore.
Relations between Ukraine and Singapore rest on the shared vision of the international rules-based order and commitment to address global challenges, trade and economic cooperation, successful collaboration on the bilateral level and within the international organizations.
Ukraine is grateful to Singapore for its unwavering support of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, which was expressed in the public statements of the Singaporean officials as well as within the UN and other international organizations.
In 2014 following Russia’s occupation of Crimea and the part of Donbass, Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong condemned an “unprovoked invasion of a sovereign country” and called upon observing the international law. In 2014, then-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore K Shanmugam and later his successor Minister Vivian Balakrishnan in 2017 both made statements in support of Ukraine.
In 2022 following the full-scale Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Government of Singapore strongly condemned Russian aggression in its official statementon the 22nd of February and imposed sanctions on the 28th of February.Singapore’s clear position was also reflected in statements by Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore Vivian Balakrishnan.
In 2022, the Republic of Singapore provided two tranches of humanitarian aid to Ukraine, in particular to respond to the needs of Ukrainian medical and rescue services. Singapore has become a key donor of humanitarian aid for the National Children's Specialized Hospital "Okhmatdyt" and the Ukrainian Society of the Deaf. Singapore Red Cross is the only humanitarian organization with a license to collect funds for humanitarian aid to Ukraine. The total amount of aid provided by Singapore accounts for over 10 million US dollars.
4. Trade and economic cooperation:
Economic cooperation is a primary sphere of bilateral relations. Despite the geographical distance, the bilateral trade expanded significantly from 56 million USD in 2015 to over 232 million USD in 2020. According to the Ukrainian statistics, the Ukrainian export to Singapore in 2020 reached 171,4 million USD, import – 60,8 million USD (positive balance – 110,6 million USD). The Singaporean investments in Ukraine are estimated at 279,1 million USD.
As a result of cooperation between the Embassy of Ukraine in Singapore and the State Service of Ukraine on Food Safety and Consumer Protection, Singapore opened its markets for Ukrainian producers of the following food products of animal origin: poultry meat, halal poultry meat, processed meat products containing meat poultry and pork, foie gras, table eggs, pet food.
Ukraine has the potential to fully satisfy Singapore’s demand in honey, legumes, chestnuts, grains (wheat and corn), cereals, seeds (sunflower, soybeans), oil (sunflower, soybean, rapeseed), margarine, sugar (cane and beet sugar), tomatoes, yeast; to significantly contribute to diversification and supply of cheese, poultry, chicken eggs, cucumbers, starch, confectionery, juices (fruit and vegetable), ice cream, bottled water, beer, tobacco products.
Ukraine regards Singapore as the key partner in South-East Asia and invites Singaporean companies to explore investment projects in Ukraine’s agriculture, IT, logistics, energy, and other industries.
5. Cultural and humanitarian cooperation:
Ukraine is becoming more and more known in Singapore due to a variety of cultural diplomacy and humanitarian events. Over the past three years, Singapore has been brought closer to:
6. Legal framework:
As of April 2021, there are 16 bilateral agreements and memorandums between Ukraine and Singapore.
7. Ukrainian community:
There are around 450 Ukrainians currently living in Singapore. In 2014, the Ukrainian Club in Singapore was created (officially registered in June 2015). Today, it unites dozens of Ukrainians leaving in the city-state.