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The Start and Evolution of Bilateral Defense Relations Between Singapore and the United States of America

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The Start and Evolution of Bilateral Defense Relations Between Singapore and the United States of America THE START AND EVOLUTION OF BILATERAL DEFENSE RELATIONS BETWEEN SINGAPORE AND THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Interviewee: Mr. Stephen J. Moree Interviewer: Jaime Wong Course: 20* Century World History Instructor: Mr. David Brandt Date: Febmary 12 2007 Table of Contents Statement of purpose 3 Biography 4 Historical contextualization 6 Interview transcription 25 Interview analysis 56 Works consulted 62 statement of purpose The purpose ofthis project is to provide a "behind the scenes" look at the evolution of bilateral defense relations between Singapore and the United States from 1965 to present day. Mr. Stephen J. Moree provides a significant amount of information regarding his personal experience working primarily in defense relations with Singapore and other Southeast Asian nations. It gives an intimate look at a topic which rarely sees much press coverage. Table of contents Biography] Mr. Stephen J. Moree was bom in 1 %2 in London Ontario, Canada. After obtaining a Maters Degree in Criminal Justice and management from the University of Tennessee, Mr. Moree eventually enlisted in the United States Air Force in 1984 at the age of 22 and served in the Security Forces branch, working first as a Northeast Asia Foreign area officer and later on in the Air Force International Affairs Office. He has been assigned to the Secretary of the Air Force, international affeirs since 15 June 2003. After six years, he served in "Operation Desert Storm" from 1990 to 1991. While on active duty Mr. Moree was awarded numerous decorations, to include the Meritorious Service Medal with silver oak leaf cluster. He eventually retired from the Air Force in 2006, attaining the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Mr. Moree's extensive experience with Asian countries, Korea and Japan in particiiar, led to him being appointed the position of Southeast Asia Branch Chief of the Department of the Air Force which is tasked vAth overseeing the United States Air Forces' activities throughout all of Southeast Asia. Notable events which he has been actively involved in include the recent sale of the American Boeing F-15SG Eagle to the Singaporean Air force. A well traveled individual, Mr. Moree has lived in countries such as Korea and Saudi Arabia, in addition to having traveled extensively in most of Southeast Asia, including Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines. Mr. Moree has also lived in California, Colorado, Michigan, Nevada and Virginia. In his spare time, Mr. Moree enjoys reading, physical fitness, skiing and hiking. Mr. Moree and his wife of 19 years, Kyung, have 2 sons mid they currently reside in Springfield, Virginia. Table of contents THE START AND EVOLUTION OF BILATERAL DEFENSE RELATIONS BETWEEN SINGAPORE AND THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA At 699 sq. km, 1.444 percent water and a population of just under 4,480,000 people, the island country Singapore, also nicknamed the "Lion City", would fit into Rhode Island, the smallest state of the United States almost four times over. (Wikipedia) Given the above statistical information, it would be natural to assume that a tiny, seemingly insignificant country such as Singapore would be vulnerable and easy prey to an invasive foreign power. As such, to deter any would-be aggressors, Singapore has, over the course of many long years, developed its very own armed forces to counter any conceivable threat against the nation. However, in the early years leading up to the eventual formation of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) on 17 July 1967, Singapore's small physical size, lack of natural resources and general inexperience in nation-building, had prompted its early leaders, such as then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, into realizing that for Singapore to build up an effective deterrent defense force which would go on to safeguard the country for many uncertain years to come, it was of utmost importance that Singapore establish strong bilateral ties and defense relations with other foreign countries. Generally speaking, the objective of such relations would be for these countries to lend a helping hand to mould the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) into a full-fledged military defense force capable of defending Singapore without it having to rely on others in times of strife. To this day, Singapore maintains healthy bilateral defense relations with countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Israel, France, and most notably, the US. To truly understand the perspective of someone who has been closely involved as a "practitioner" in the development and growth of these defense ties, one must examine the character and inner workings of bilateral defense ties between Singapore and the US, the broad relationship between the two countries in the past and present as well as look at future trends. On the morning of August 9965 at approximately 10 a.m., then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew appeared on national television and tearfully announced Singapore's separation from Malaysia. Singapore had been forced out of Malaysia. Singapore accepted it in order to avoid communal bloodshed between the Chinese and the Malay races. With the tears shed, the televised press conference over, and the news splashed all over the front page of the Straits Times, Singapore was on its own. It had become an independent, sovereign state. The machinery of early nationhood was immediately set in motion. Within days, the island country was declared a Republic and the Legislative Assembly renamed as Parliament. Malay was retained as the national language, and English, Chinese and Tamil continued as official languages. (CIA world fact book) For a small and young nation such as Singapore, international recognition was a priority. In order for Singapore to prosper into the future, it had to make the international community take notice of it. On^^29eptember 1965, Singapore was officially recognized as the 117 member of the United Nations. Yet, such early successes following independence seemed to be overshadowed by the plethora of immediate, awesome and intimidating challenges Singapore faced as a result of being suddenly thrust into independence. This not only tested its resolve to survive in the ever-changing world but also simultaneously had many skeptics wondering if Singapore could survive in the future. Here was a small island of no more than 600 sq km strategically located at the southern tip of the Straits of Malacca where the western Pacific Ocean meets the Indian Ocean. (Singapore was slightly smaller in size in 1965 before later land reclamation works added on the extra area.) Singapore could boast no natural resources other than its people and little industrial experience. Furthermore, though the island's defense was bolstered by the presence of British forces, many were already aware of the British contemplating the withdrawal of their troops from Asia. Singapore's future role in the region was most uncertain. Many pundits were skeptical and doubtful of Singapore's prospects after independence, predicting a general relapse into economic decay and mounting political turbulence and viewing separation from Malaysia as temporary rather than a permanent state of affairs. To further add to Singapore's troubles, the Cold War was then at its height. Southeast Asia was in an uncertain flux, having become a maelstrom of great power politics with the escalating Vietnam War serving as its centerpiece. Before the year was over, India and Pakistan would be at war over Kashmir, and Indonesian President Sukarno would be overthrown in a bloody coup that saw the murder of several Indonesian generals. To the north, China was in the midst of its internal turmoil caused by its self-inflicted Cultural Revolution. It was at this time when the region was arguably going through one of its most difficult periods since the conclusion of World War Two that the island nation Singapore was bom. From this broad overview of events occurring prior to and immediately after Singapore's Independence, it was clear that one of the more pressing challenges which Singapore faced was the issue of self-defense. The big dilemma was how a tiny, fledgling island country would defend itself against possible adventurism in a region wrought with conflict. For the leaders of the young country, the only discernible answer to this problem lay beyond Singapore's borders, and not surprisingly, one of the countries sought out by Singapore to aid in the development of a defense force was the US. However, before any bilateral work on developing defense co-operation could begin, Singapore had to first establish diplomatic relations with the US. This was initially not only slow to accomplish. but also laden with controversy. In part, this could have been due to remarks made about American leaders by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who made public a particular incident in 1960 involving the Central Intelligence Agency, and openly accused US leaders of lacking in "depth and wisdom" (Liu 69). Naturally, this displeased the US and thus Singapore's request for aid in defense building was flatly refused. The furor died down within a few months and on Aprir41966 - a week after the first group of American troops arrived from Vietnam for "rest and recreation" with Singapore's approval - the two countries agreed to exchange ambassadors, thereby marking the official establishment of diplomatic relations between the Republic of Singapore and the United States of America. (The Singapore Foreign Service) An article published in The New York Times on April 5 1966 under the heading "Singapore Agrees to Exchange Ambassadors with Washington" explained that the decision to exchange ambassadors "reflected growing co-operation between the two countries and apparent policy adjustments since Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew's anti-American statements last autumn". (Liu 71) With the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, Singapore's defense force and its defense relations with the US have gained tremendous strength.
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