18-3-2024 (SINGAPORE) Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan is set to embark on a working visit to the Middle East, where he will visit the Palestinian territories, Israel, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, and Saudi Arabia from March 18 to March 24. Accompanying him on this leg of the trip are Ministry of Foreign officials and five Members of Parliament (MPs), including Mr. Alex Yam, Ms. Nadia Ahmad Samdin, Ms. Rachel Ong, Mr. Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim from the ruling People’s Action Party, and Workers’ Party MP Gerald Giam.
Before heading to the next destinations, the group of MPs, who were in Amman on March 17, joined Singaporean students in the Jordanian capital for iftar, the evening meal that breaks the fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Additionally, they witnessed the presentation of a cheque worth $6.1 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the primary UN aid agency in Gaza. The funds were part of a remarkable $8.1 million raised by Singaporean charity Rahmatan Lil Alamin Foundation in late 2023 to provide assistance to communities in the embattled Palestinian enclave.
Foreign Minister Balakrishnan’s visit to the Middle East commenced on March 15 with a stop in Doha, where he met Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed Abdulrahman Al Thani. From there, he proceeded to Amman, where he had meetings with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on March 16 and called on Jordan’s Prime Minister Bisher Al Khasawneh on March 17.
During their time in Jordan, Foreign Minister Balakrishnan and Senior Minister of State for Defence Zaqy Mohamad were granted an audience with King Abdullah II at the Royal Palace in Aqaba on March 17. They also marked the arrival of Singapore’s third tranche of humanitarian aid, destined for Gaza, at King Abdullah II Air Base.
