Singapore Praises Pakistan’s Gulf Mediation Role
Singapore’s Foreign Minister Dr Vivian Balakrishnan has praised Pakistan’s Gulf mediation role, calling it “incredibly valuable” at a joint press briefing in Islamabad on Friday, October 30, 2026. He spoke alongside Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, after the two sides exchanged a disaster management agreement earlier in the day.
Balakrishnan said Pakistan played a “unique but very constructive and valuable role” in the Gulf. He added that Singapore wished Pakistan success in that role, “because if you succeed, it is good for all of us.”
Why the Gulf mediation role matters to Singapore
Balakrishnan linked Pakistan’s role directly to energy and trade. He noted that most of the energy that passes through the Gulf heads east, to South Asia, Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia. A disruption in the Gulf therefore hits Singapore as well as Pakistan, even though Singapore sits far from the Strait of Hormuz.
Pakistan is a key mediator between the United States and Iran. Its earlier mediation efforts with both parties produced an interim peace agreement in June, but that agreement has since faltered, amid new fighting between Iran and the United States in recent weeks. Against that background, Balakrishnan’s praise reads as a public backing for continued mediation, not just a polite remark.
Dar, addressing the same briefing, said bilateral discussions had covered “the impact of regional tensions and maritime trade.” He described secure sea routes and uninterrupted supply chains as “essential to trade and economic stability.” He also said Pakistan reaffirmed “the central role of dialogue and diplomacy, respect for international law and adherence to the principles of the UN Charter.”
Three areas of cooperation
Balakrishnan set out three areas where the two countries are working together. The first was trade and economic cooperation. He said Pakistan and Singapore shared “excellent ties” at the diplomatic level, but trade relations “ought to be much higher” than the current numbers show. He said the two countries had to “facilitate greater trade and investment flows, strengthen the links, especially between SMEs, between businessmen,” who needed to meet and understand opportunities and risks on both sides.
The second area was disaster management. The two sides exchanged a memorandum of understanding between Singapore’s Civil Defence Force and Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority. Balakrishnan said the move reflected “our shared commitment to strengthen disaster preparedness and the response.” That agreement was the subject of the Dar-Singapore disaster management MoU report earlier on Friday, which covered the talks and the exchange in detail. Balakrishnan added that Pakistan had “extensive experience in responding to large-scale natural disasters, including floods,” and that “there is much that Singapore can learn from Pakistan in how to cope and how to be more resilient.”
The third area was people-to-people ties, with education at the centre. Balakrishnan said Singapore welcomed deeper cooperation between its institutes of higher learning, including Nanyang Technological University and the National University of Singapore, and Pakistan’s National University of Science and Technology. ## Trade office, flights and Shehbaz meeting
Dar said the two sides agreed to encourage closer engagement between business communities through exchange of business delegations and stronger links between chambers of commerce. He also said they discussed the reopening of the Pakistan Trade and Investment Office at the Pakistan High Commission in Singapore. The reopening, he said, “shows Pakistan’s resolve to promote stronger B2B ties with Singapore.”
Later on Friday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Balakrishnan and discussed ways to increase bilateral trade and investment. The Prime Minister’s Office said they also discussed cooperation in “priority areas” including the digital economy, fintech, infrastructure development, logistics, small and medium enterprises and the services sector. Shehbaz praised Singapore’s “remarkable economic transformation” and its achievements in innovation and development, and said Pakistan valued its partnership with Singapore at the bilateral level, through ASEAN and at multilateral forums.
What this visit adds up to
The original report on this briefing and meeting was published by The Express Tribune.
What did Singapore’s foreign minister say about Pakistan?
Dr Vivian Balakrishnan commended Pakistan for “the incredibly valuable role” it is playing in the Gulf, and called its role “unique but very constructive and valuable.”
What agreement did Pakistan and Singapore exchange?
They exchanged a memorandum of understanding on disaster management between Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority and Singapore’s Civil Defence Force.
