appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Jean Iau

Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam’s first state visit to Malaysia this week comes amid strengthening ties between the neighbours and a greater willingness on both sides to let go of historical “baggage”, analysts say.
Observers add that the new generation of Southeast Asian leaders also possesses a heightened awareness of mutual needs in an increasingly fragmented world order.
Tharman, who was elected president in 2023 after stepping down as senior minister, is on a state visit to Kuala Lumpur from Sunday to Wednesday at the invitation of Malaysia’s King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, who visited Singapore in May 2024.
In an interview published by Malaysia’s state-run news agency Bernama on Sunday, Tharman stressed that the trip showed the importance both countries placed on building understanding at all levels.
“It has never been, and must never be, a purely transactional relationship. In an increasingly troubled world, the trust that we have accumulated and kept renewing over the past 60 years is critical,” Tharman said.

That trust was the bedrock upon which both neighbours had built cooperation and symbiotic development in areas such as economic integration, renewable energy and talent development, he added.
Singapore and Malaysia have had disagreements predating the 61 years since the city state separated and became independent.
Sore points have included a water agreement allowing Singapore to buy and import water from Malaysia, and territorial disputes involving the Pedra Branca islets, which were escalated to the International Court of Justice.
Yet the two countries share deeply integrated supply chains, infrastructure projects and a joint economic zone. Singapore is Malaysia’s second largest trading partner, with total trade reaching 402.35 billion ringgit (US$98 billion) in 2025, an increase of 1.5 per cent compared with 2024.
Local media reports put the number of Singaporeans living and working in Malaysia at about 120,000.
Mutual needs
There has always been recognition of the multilayered relationship between the two countries, according to Francis Hutchinson, principal fellow at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute and coordinator of its Malaysia studies programme.
“But over the past 10 to 15 years, you have seen a new generation of leaders on both sides of the causeway taking over, and this has enabled more initiatives to be explored with less ‘baggage’,” Hutchinson said.
He cited the negotiations underpinning the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) as an example of discussions being more positive and less couched in zero-sum terms than in the past.
Beyond generational change, Hutchinson said that both sides were also acutely aware of their mutual reliance on supply chains for crucial goods such as electronics, oil and gas.
“It is likely that we will see the two countries forge ahead in key areas both to harvest low-hanging fruit and demonstrate the potential for more ambitious groupings to follow,” he said.

Shashi Jayakumar, executive director of SJK Geostrategic Advisory, said the incremental changes in the relationship were underpinned by a recognition that “even as thorny issues may occasionally arise, both sides will increasingly need each other in this fragmenting world”.
There was clear impetus to manage friction through channels such as the leaders’ retreat, he said, adding that projects like the JS-SEZ and Johor Bahru–Singapore Rapid Transit System Link showed the mutual benefits of cooperation.
“Does all this mean that disagreements will never arise? I do not think so – but the cementing of processes at the highest level, as well as standing mechanisms at the senior and technical officials’ level, might help minimise the possibility that issues could suddenly flare up in an antagonistic way,” he said.
Asked whether the close relationship would endure a change in leadership, Jayakumar said that while ties had become “somewhat more tricky” when Mahathir Mohamad returned as prime minister in May 2018, negotiations still continued regardless.
Both sides mutually suspended port claims in March 2019 and agreed to an international third-party dispute settlement procedure if bilateral talks failed. The annual leaders’ retreat also continued, including Mahathir and Lee Hsien Loong’s first meeting together in 2019.
“I would suggest that even if there is a major political shift, there is still a relatively durable institutional scaffolding to manage differences that from time to time might arise,” Jayakumar said.
While positive personal relationships between leaders were good for ties, such rapport was not always possible nor was it sufficient on its own, said Ariel Tan, senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies and coordinator of its Malaysia programme.
“What is essential is that both sides see that cooperation and dispute settlement are in their respective national interests, otherwise, the friendliest partners would not be able to sell it to their own people,” Tan said.
Jayakumar, however, pointed to Tharman’s Bernama interview as a sign of a “maturing” bilateral relationship.
The president recalled his time in a paddy-farming village in Kedah nearly 50 years ago as an early impression of Malaysian hospitality, closing the interview with the Malay saying “jiran sepakat membawa berkat” (neighbours in agreement bring blessings).
“The seemingly imperceptible markers of the maturing relationship are going to add up and count for something over the longer term,” Jayakumar said.


Singapore nets US$862,000 from first auction in money laundering case

The cooling trap: how Asia’s air conditioners are making heatwaves worse

What Hong Kong cinema can take away from a popular Chinese war film

Why AI giants are choosing Singapore to turn models into real-world tools

Singapore

Singapore-Malaysia relations enter ‘mature’ era with Tharman’s state visit

Singapore’s President Tharman Shanmugaratnam (right) and Malaysia’s King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar inspect honour guards during a welcoming ceremony in Kuala Lumpur on Monday. Photo: Facebook/officialsultanibrahim


Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam signs the guest book as Malaysian King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar looks on. Photo: Facebook/officialsultanibrahim

Singapore’s President Tharman Shanmugaratnam (left) chats with Malaysia’s King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar in Kuala Lumpur on Monday. Photo: Facebook/officialsultanibrahim 

Who cares for Singapore’s carers? Recent deaths highlight urgent need to tackle burnout

Content creator Edgar Tang speaks to his father in a nursing home. Photo: Handout

Karasi Chandramogan is the sole carer for her 66-year-old mother and 38-year-old brother, who has special needs. Photo: Handout

A carer supports an elderly woman while walking in a park in Singapore. Photo: AFP

Elderly people play board games in Singapore’s Chinatown district. Photo: AFP

At Davos, Singapore’s Tharman calls for US-China rivalry to ‘benefit’ world

Singapore’s President Tharman Shanmugaratnam during the 56th annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

Members of the UN Security Council during a meeting on the situation in Iran at the UN headquarters in New York City on January 15. Photo: Getty Images via AFP

Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins during the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. Robbins says transparency is essential to rebuilding multilateral trust. Photo: Reuters

Solar panels installed in Khavda, in India’s Gujarat state. Singapore’s President Tharman Shanmugaratnam has highlighted green transition as an opportunity for job creation in the developing world. Photo: AFP

Singapore must be Asia’s gateway, uphold social mobility at home: president

President Tharman Shanmugaratnam speaks at the opening of the 15th parliament in Singapore on Friday. Photo: Handout

President Tharman Shanmugaratnam (centre) during the opening of the 15th parliament in Singapore on Friday. Tharman urged the city state to continue to be exceptional in its multiculturalism and unity. Photo: Handout

The parliament building in Singapore. The city state’s 15th parliament opened on Friday. Photo: Shutterstock

Changes underway in Singapore’s smaller opposition parties as leaders quit

Progress Singapore Party supporters wave flags at a nomination centre on Apriil 23, 2025. Photo: EPA-EFE

Stephanie Tan announces her resignation on social media. Photo: Instagram/progresssingaporeparty

Lee Hsien Yang, brother of then Singaporean prime minister Lee Hsien Loong and a PSP member, takes a break during a walkabout on July 5, 2020. Photo: AFP

Goh Meng Seng speaks at a PPP rally in April 2025. Photo: Wikipedia/ZKang123

Then PSP chairman Tan Cheng Bock meets residents during a walkabout in April 2025. Photo: Jean Iau

This Week in Asia

Politics

People

News

Asia

Southeast Asia

Singapore’s president, in Kuala Lumpur at the invitation of Malaysia’s king, says both nations need each other in a troubled world


Singapore’s president, in Kuala Lumpur at the invitation of Malaysia’s king, says both nations need each other in a troubled world.


Singapore-Malaysia relations enter ‘mature’ era with Tharman’s state visit

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Singapore’s president, in Kuala Lumpur at the invitation of Malaysia’s king, says both nations need each other in a troubled world

Singapore’s president, in Kuala Lumpur at the invitation of Malaysia’s king, says both nations need each other in a troubled world