On day two of his state visit to Singapore, President Moon Jae-in began the scheduled events in earnest, attending the official welcoming ceremony on the lawn of the Istana, the official residence and office of the President of Singapore. The ceremony was hosted by Singaporean President Halimah Yacob, the country’s first female President. Following the ceremony, the two Presidents held a meeting.

Korea became the first Asian country to conclude a free trade agreement with Singapore in 2005. Solid bilateral economic cooperation has continued as statistics show—Singapore is Korea’s second largest trading partner among ASEAN member states. 

Welcoming President Moon and First Lady Kim Jung-sook, President Yacob expressed her appreciation for the South Korean President making the first state visit to Singapore from Korea in 15 years. She said this state visit attested to the progress of relations between Korea and Singapore, adding that the two countries were maintaining very good ties in various fields. 

President Moon stressed that the two countries should expand cooperation on joint research and the sharing of their technology and experience in cutting-edge areas, including high-tech manufacturing, artificial intelligence, big data, fintech and bio- and medical science by combining advanced technologies and talented human resources in the face of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. President Moon noted that Singapore was successfully performing its role as the Chair of ASEAN this year. He also expressed the hope that close cooperation between Korea and Singapore would substantively develop Korea-ASEAN collaboration.